Changes: A Love Story
by writewithlove7
Summary: After five years of living in San Lorenzo, sixteen year old Arnold has moved back to Hillwood, and everything has changed.
1. Prologue

The city of Hillwood had changed significantly over the past five years, from the gentrification of the neighborhoods, to the heavy cleanup of the park, to even the revamp of the City Government. However, the aspect of Hillwood that changed the most was the lives of the children of P.S. 118.

They were no longer children, but rather teenagers. After completing their last year of P.S. 118 as sixth graders, some children, including Rhonda, moved away to different or prestigious schools. Some, like Harold, changed physically in a positive light. Then some, like Helga, changed emotionally, but it was not for the best.

For Helga, her world came crashing down at the end of sixth grade. She finally got her wish, she was with the love of her life as an official couple. After helping her beloved Arnold find his parents, and in fact save them from the sleeping sickness with the use of her locket, they became a couple. Although most of the summer was a struggle for her to come to terms with the fact that she could let her guard down, Arnold still persevered. Eventually, she did let her guard down, and despite some taunts from classmates like Harold about their exclusive relationship, she could not be happier. This was the one thing that she had always wanted. Although Arnold did not know until about two years prior that she was in love with him, he didn't know that he was the constant in her life. He kept her safe, and kept her grounded when the rest of the world attempted to destroy her.

For Helga, sixth grade was the best year of her life, because for once, something was going her way. The year seemed to go by in a blur, and then it was the summer before seventh grade. For Helga, this was the worst day of her life.

…...

"So, you're telling me...that...you...you're moving...away?" She asked with a mix of shock, deception, and sadness.

Arnold could not look at his girlfriend in the eye. The truth was that he wanted to move away, and help out the less fortunate, including the Green Eyes. Yet, he didn't want to leave his girlfriend, the one that had helped him so many times and had stayed loyal to him, behind. He looked out onto the dock and replied, "Yeah, I am. My parents-"

Although Helga had toned down on her anger, she lashed out, "OH! YOUR PRECIOUS PARENTS, THE ONES WHO COULDN'T DO WRONG, YOUR STUPID SACRED PARENTS ARE DRAGGING YOU OUT OF THIS GOD FORSAKEN CESSPOOL TO BRAINWASH YOU TO BECOME A _HUMANITARIAN_ LIKE THEM HUH?!"

Arnold looked away from the dock, and looked at his girlfriend in disbelief. She hadn't lashed out since the second day of sixth grade, and now she was going back to her old ways. He understood why, but he still didn't like what she was saying. They were his parents, after all.

"No, Helga, it isn't like that. My parents like it here, but they want to show me the world. They watched the video that you, Gerald, and the rest of the gang made for the Helpers for Humanity contest. They want to give me a good experience of helping others. That's why we are moving. It's not necessarily that they wanted to take me out of Hillwood, I wanted to go too."

Suddenly, he wished he didn't say that last part. Helga shot Arnold a glance that looked as though he stabbed her in the stomach. She turned pale, and you could see the anger and fury in her eyes. "YOU wanted to go with them, and LEAVE ME?!" She shouted. Suddenly, dock workers started to look over in their direction. "So I mean absolutely nothing to you, huh? After all I have done for you, and this is the thanks I get?!"

Arnold's head was spinning. Even though he had dealt with years of torment from Helga, he had never seen her this mad before. To be honest, he didn't know what to say. Reaching out for Helga's hand, he said, "Helga, I-"

"Don't 'Helga' me, bucko." She snapped, as she slapped his hand away. "I can't believe I spent so many years loving an asshole like YOU!" She yelled. She stared into his eyes, which were now filled with tears. Arnold looked away from her, and looked down at the wood plank.

"You don't mean that, Helga."

"Well maybe I do!" She screamed, as she turned away from him, and ran out of the dock area. Arnold sighed, and opened up the bag that was sitting on the ground at his feet. He opened up the bag to reveal a pink leather-bound journal that he planned on giving to Helga. He knew that writing kept her sane, and since he was leaving, he wanted to give her something to keep her at bay. He closed his eyes, placed the journal back in the bag, and headed out of the dock area to go to Helga's house, the Beeper Emporium.

When he got to her house, he saw a small light on, which he could tell was her makeshift room. He could hear some commotion from her room, and figured she was demolishing things of his. As he was about to knock on the door, he stopped himself. Thinking that she was still upset, he teared a piece of paper from the back of the journal, took out the pen from the bag, and wrote a note:

 _Helga,_  
 _I know you are too upset to talk, and you would probably kick my ass, but I wanted to say I am sorry. I am so sorry that I didn't tell you sooner. I am sorry that I let you down. I am sorry that I was selfish, and didn't think about you._

 _I love you Helga Geraldine Pataki, and that is never going to change. Even if you don't love me anymore, I will still love you. You have done so much for me over the years, even things I have yet to find out about._

 _I wanted to give you this journal when we met today. I know how much writing means to you, and I wanted to give you something that you would cherish forever. I wish I could tell my parents to not move, but it is too later for that, as they have already set everything up. I wish I could turn back time and did things differently with you._

 _I really hope you read this before tomorrow, but if not, I will stop by to see you. My parents and I will be leaving later on in the afternoon, and I don't want to leave without saying goodbye, even if you are still upset with me._

 _I love you so much, my pudding puff._

 _Love,_  
 _Arnold_

Arnold placed the note on the bag, knocked the door, and ran off before anyone got to the door to answer it. He hoped the bag got to the right person that it was supposed to...

The next day, Arnold got up as soon as his room lit up from the skylight. Since his alarm clock was packed away in the many boxes that there were in his room, he had to rely on this for his wake-up call. He put on whatever clothes he could find, and snuck out of the house before anyone could wake up and notice him leave. When he got to Helga's house, he noticed that the bag was gone from where he placed it last night. As if it was the universe doing its work, Helga opened up the door.

"Hey," she said quietly.

"Hey," he said nervously. "Helga, I-"

Helga put up her hand and closed her eyes. "Save it, Arnold. I'm mad, but I understand why you're leaving. I'm not going to have our potential last time we ever see each other be filled with hate and anger."

"Okay," he said. "Did you like the journal?"

Helga grinned, and looked at him. "I love it, Arnold. Thank you."

Arnold smiled back at her. "Do you want to go for a walk?"

With a relaxed tone, Helga replied, "Sure."

They walked all around Hillwood, from Slausen's, to Gerald Field, and then stopped at P.S. 118's playground. Arnold looked at his watch that his dad got him for Christmas earlier that year. He realized he had to go soon, as he had to say bye to his Grandma and Grandpa before leaving. Reluctantly, he said, "Helga, I hate to do this, but I have to go soon."

With a sad expression, Helga looked down at the ground. "It's already that time?"

Arnold's heart sunk into his stomach. "Unfortunately, yes."

"Well, this was good. Just to get out of my hellhole."

Arnold grinned. Helga could be so funny, even when she tried not to be. "Let me at least walk you home, okay? Plus, I want to soak out as much time as I can with you."

Helga couldn't help but flirtatiously sigh, and said, "Okay." Arnold grabbed her hand, and walked her home. When they got back to the Emporium, Arnold squeezed her hand, as if he didn't want to let go.

"Arnold, you have to go. Everyone's gonna be waiting for you at home." Helga said, with sadness filling every word.

"I know. I just want to say Helga, that I have had such an amazing eleven years with you. I hope that me leaving does not separate us. I love you, Helga G. Pataki." And with that sentence, he kissed her as passionately as he could. Pulling away, he said, "I promise to write to you every day, and keep you updated on everything." He then hugged her, and they both started crying.

Helga couldn't take it anymore. She pulled away and said, "Okay Arnold, you have to go."

And with that, he kissed her hand, and walked home for the last time in Hillwood.

Although they both tried hard in the beginning of Arnold's move to keep in contact, it became very hard, with the internet access and lack of post offices. With every fail on each other's part, Helga became sadder and sadder. Finally, she stopped writing and contacting Arnold, despite his attempts of writing and contacting her. She realized that she would never see the love of her life again. Her life not only fell apart in that way, but her dad lost the business, and they were living in the projects of Hillwood. Her home life became even worse, with Bob becoming depressed, and Miriam overworking herself at the local grocers. She felt like she didn't belong anywhere, and no one cared about her, not even Arnold.


	2. Chapter 1

PRESENT DAY- The August Before Junior Year:

 _Arnold took off Helga's underwear with his teeth, slowly, but aggressively. Once they were off, he licked her from her neck, down to her pelvis. He placed a finger in her, moving it back and forth. He wanted nothing more than to make her 'girlhood' tremble..._

"Oh Arnol-!" Helga screamed. She shook her head out of the sexual thought she had, just as a seventeen year old boy emerged from the blankets.

"Um, who?" Wolfgang asked, as he was wiping his mouth.

Helga nervously shook her head and said, "Oh! No one! I meant to say you, but then I saw the poster you have of Ernie Betterman!" She said with a nervous laugh.

Wolfgang turned around, and looked at the poster of the rockstar that was on his wall. He shrugged, got up, and put on his jeans. Helga breathed out, relieved that Wolfgang believed her lie. She figured he would, since he wasn't the brightest guy in Hillwood.

Helga followed suit, and started to put on her jeans as well. Her signature outfit of a pink dress, white shirt, and pigtails quickly changed after Arnold left for San Lorezno, trading it for jeans, a gray shirt, and her hair pulled into a long ponytail. She even got rid of her pink bow, since she only wore it for Arnold, and he would never come back to Hillwood.

As she was putting on her shirt, she felt a wave of disappointment hit her like a ton of bricks. Yes, she thought of Arnold sexually, but that was the only way that she could have sex with Wolfgang, or that's what she told herself. He was decent at sex, but he wasn't a looker, to say the least.

"Listen, Helga.." Wolfgang said, "I think we should stop doing this."

Surprised, Helga said, "Oh. Why?"

"Well, it's just that...there's this girl, she's going to be a senior this year. Her name is Joanna, and I really like her and want to try to ask her out. But I don't want to keep having sex with you in case she and I become a couple. That would be cheating, and I can't do that. I have standards."

Upset, Helga looked down. She expected this. When her and Wolfgang came up with the idea to have sex earlier in the summer, it was a win-win for both: Helga wanted to lose her virginity just to get it over with, as well as take out all her built up anger and depression through sex. Wolfgang just wanted to have a side chick to have sex with that wouldn't develop feelings for him, which he knew Helga would never do. Wolfgang stopped being the bully once he got to junior high, and the eighth graders kicked the shit out of him on his first day; so he finally got a conscience.

Helga was upset for two reasons, one was that she would have to find someone else to have sex with, since she was an extremely horny individual. The second reason was that although her and Wolfgang had no love for each other, she felt like he was throwing her away, just like Arnold did. She looked up from the floor, and nodded at Wolfgang. "I get it. Don't worry, man."

"Okay great. Well, good luck out there Helga," Wolfgang said as he showed her out of his house.

"I'm still going to see you at school every day when it starts back up, doi! It's not like you are trading me off or something, criminy!"

"Oh yeah," Wolfgang laughed, "You're right! Well, see ya!" And he shut the door before Helga could say anything back.

Helga started walking towards her home, Hillwood Heights, an income-assisted apartment building that was in the slums of Hillwood. _Fucking Wolfgang. I don't care about the fucker, but I have needs! Well, at_ _least I won't have to pass by this_ _stupid boarding house anymore_ , Helga thought. It was true, every time her and Wolfgang had sex, which was always at his house, Helga would have to walk home and pass by the Sunset Arms Boarding House, where Arnold used to live. Sometimes, she would see his grandparents, who looked healthier than ever, even in their late eighties. If she would see them, she would quickly hide behind a trash can, or the side of the house, because she couldn't bear to hear how Arnold was doing, or have them ask if they are still together.

She stopped at the stoop of the boarding house, and looked up at what used to be Arnold's window. She saw a light on, but figured it was a boarder that probably took space in his room. Sighing, she turned away from the boarding house, and headed towards her house. She could tell when she was hitting the bad section of Hillwood, as the police sirens got louder, homeless people roamed the streets, and thugs were constantly stalking whoever was crazy enough to walk the streets alone, like her.

When she finally got to the apartment building, she walked over to the dingy looking keypad, and typed in the code to get in. The halls of the building were dark and loud, as the lights flickered on and off and the voices of people screaming engulfed the halls. Looking towards the elevator, she headed for the stairs instead, since there were people in it that looked like they were passed out, presumably from drugs.

It was on the third floor staircase that she started to feel winded. _Huh, that's wierd. I climb these stairs almost every day, why am I getting winded now?_ She thought to herself. Thinking that it was just because it was a hot August day, she decided to take the rest of the stairs slow. When she finally got to her apartment, which was on the fifth floor, she felt exhausted and very out of breath. _Criminy! This heat just needs to stop!_

Walking into her room, she saw Bob in the loveseat, passed out with the daytime soaps on. Miriam also was passed out on the tattered couch, with a bottle of Bacardi loosely in her hands. _Must be her day off_ , Helga thought to herself. Although Miriam now took the place of breadwinner while Bob became stagnant around the house, Miriam never curbed her love for alcohol. When the Patakis lost the business, she transitioned from alcoholic smoothies to hard liquor straight from the bottle. Sometimes, she would even show up to work slightly buzzed. This pissed off Helga, because if the state ever found out, they could lose their rights to this apartment, and she would most likely get sent off to some foster care system. Despite the fact that she loathed her parents, she also didn't want to live with a bunch of loony foster parents either. Sighing in frustration, Helga walked over to Miriam, and slowly took the bottle out of her hand to prevent it from smashing on the floor. She went into the kitchen, took a swig of the substance herself, and went to her room.

She closed the door, undressed herself, and went to her bureau to put on something more comfortable. She looked at herself in the mirror, _Jesus Christ, I look like shit,_ she thought to herself. Helga took a large shirt from her bureau, put it on, and laid in bed with her headphones on. Just as she was about to play screamo music from Phoebe's old iPod that Helga downloaded illegally, she rushed into the bathroom with bile coming out of her mouth.


	3. Chapter 2

THE NEXT MORNING:

Arnold woke up, and looked around his old room. Inhaling the familiar smell of nostalgia, he got up from his bed, and headed to breakfast. As he walked down the stairs, he heard the familiar sounds of the boarders, Ernie, Mr. Huynh, and Mr. Kokoschka (Suzie finally left Oskar after he gambled her savings away in a bet that he inevitably lost). _Ah, it feels good to be back_ , Arnold thought to himself.

"Hey sweetheart, did you sleep well?" His mother, Stella, asked as she was placing the plate of pancakes on the table.

"Oh yeah, I mean, it was hard at first with all of the outside noise, but I got used to it," Arnold said.

"Well I'm sure! You _have_ been living in the jungle for five years, and it is quieter there," Stella said, "So, what do you have planned for your first day back?"

Arnold rubbed his neck, he wasn't really sure what he wanted to do today. It was August, so at least he didn't have the nerves yet of going back to school, but he hadn't really told anyone that he was coming back. He regretted that, because at least he would have plans. "Well, I don't know. I didn't really tell anyone I was coming back."

Stella looked surprised. "Arnold, why? I thought you were excited to move back and see everyone again?"

"That's just it, I was so excited to move back that I completely missed out the part about actually telling people that I was coming back," Arnold replied with a nervous laugh.

"Well, why don't you call Ger-"

"Hello Short man! How's the day treating you so far?" Arnold's grandfather hollered, while entering the kitchen. Although Arnold wasn't short anymore, measuring to be taller than his grandfather and about the same height as his dad, he still loved the nickname that his grandfather gave him.

Arnold smiled, running over to his grandfather to give him a hug. "Great, Grandpa. I missed you so much!"

Arnold's grandfather looked at him, trying to hold back tears. His grandson was no longer a boy, but a man. He had changed so much physically, from the height, to the deeper voice, to even the slim athletic build that Arnold had acquired. It was all too much for him. "We missed you too, Arnold."

As if the reunion could not get any sweeter, Arnold's grandmother barged in from the hallway, wearing a cowboy outfit. "Hello Slim, how's the pickin's today?"

Arnold laughed, he missed his grandmother's crazy antics. "Hi Grandma."

As his family all sat down at the kitchen table for their breakfast, Stella began to finish her interrupted sentence from earlier. "So, you could call Gerald and let him know you're here? Or your other friends?" Stella knew better than to mention his ex-girlfriend.

"Yeah, I'm definitely going to hit up Gerald as soon as I'm done with these pancakes. Speaking of, Mom, these are so good!" He didn't know what he was missing out on before he found his parents in San Lorenzo. His mom could cook like there was no tomorrow, and her food was actually appetizing, as compared to his grandmother's cooking.

After he finished his breakfast, he washed the dishes, and headed up to his room. He picked up a remote from his desk, and studied it. _How the hell do I even use this again?_ Arnold asked himself. Guessing, he pressed the blue button on the remote, and his old couch folded out from the wall. It didn't happen with as much fluid movement as it did five years ago, but it still worked. _I'm gonna_ _have to fix that_.

Arnold walked over to the couch and sat down. Picking up the phone that was placed next to the couch, since he didn't have a cell phone, he dialed Gerald's number without hesitation.

"Um, hello?" Gerald asked in a weary tone.

"Gerald? It's me, Arnold!" Arnold was so excited to hear from his best friend. Just as he tried with Helga to stay in contact when he was in San Lorenzo, he did the same with Gerald, and it was hard. So, they eventually made a pact to have Arnold initiate the call whenever he could get proper phone service. Unfortunately, that didn't happen often.

"Arnold? Arnold, as in Arnold Shortman, my best friend?" Gerald could hardly hold in his excitement.

Arnold was surprised that Gerald considered him his best friend, since they hadn't been in touch for so long. "Yes man, it's me. I moved back to Hillwood literally last night. I'm gonna finish high school here!"

"Don't play with me man, I know you are still in San Lorenzo having the time of your life." Gerald sounded somewhat upset, thinking that Arnold was playing a sick joke on him.

"Gerald, relax! I really did move back. I was going to tell you way before this, but I just got so caught up with moving back that I didn't let anyone know. I'm sorry man, I know it sounds like I'm messing with you, but I'm really not. Plus, look at the caller ID," Arnold defended himself.

There was silence on the other end of the phone, until Gerald finally spoke up. "Oh, uh right.," Gerald nervously laughed, "So, you're really here? You're really back in Hillwood, and staying for good?"

Arnold smiled, although Gerald couldn't see him. "Yes man, I'm really back and staying for good."

"Yes! I can't believe this! Okay, I will be at your house in fifteen. You're still at the boarding house, right?"

"Sure am!"

"Okay, see you my brotha."

"See ya." Arnold clicked the phone into the holder and laid down on the couch. _Some things never change_ , he thought to himself, _it's awesome to be back_.

After throwing up most of the night, Helga woke up feeling like she got hit by a bus. She turned to the side, and looked at her clock: it read 12:48 PM. Criminy, I never sleep this late. _It must be heat stroke, since I was outside most of the day before going over to Wolfgang's_. Walking out from her room, she headed to the kitchen and grabbed a bowl for her cereal. This is what she usually had for meals, since Bob and Miriam never cooked and she couldn't cook to save her life. The only time she would have a good meal would be when she went to Phoebe's house, which she tried to do as much as she could. _What should I have today, Cookie Crisp, Lucky Charms, or Rice Krispies?_ Thinking of how much she threw up last night, she figured she'd play it safe and have the Rice Krispies.

She sat down on the couch and turned on the television to reruns of WWE. Bob was still sleeping on the loveseat, with cereal crumbs on his shirt and a bowl on the coffee table. She took a good look at Bob, and saw how much he had changed since they lost the business. He now had a five o'clock shadow, he gained about fifty pounds, and he had dark circles under his eyes. He slept most of the time, and when he would get up, it was only to use the bathroom or get food. Realizing she didn't want to be in the same room as Bob, she turned off the TV, and went into her bedroom.

She sat on her bed, and turned on her prepaid flip phone that she got from the state. As she was waiting for her ancient phone to turn on, she started to feel nauseous. Feeling the bile coming up again, she ran to the bathroom and threw up the little breakfast that she ate.

 _What the fuck? Do I have food poisoning or something? I mean, I'm not sure what I would have eaten to get it, but still. Maybe a little weed will help_. Helga walked over to her bed, and searched for the separation between the mattress and the bed frame. She then pulled out a Ziploc bag that contained a nug of weed. _Criminy, I'll have to hit up Lila for some more_. She searched for her grinder and her bowl, which was in her nightstand drawer. She quietly shut her door, ground up the weed, and placed in the bowl. _Dammit, I need my_ _lighter_. Helga couldn't find hers, but she knew Miriam had one somewhere, so she went into the bathroom. Once she was in the bathroom, she looked under the sink, and instead of finding a lighter, she found her box of tampons. And in that moment, the whole world froze in Helga's mind.


	4. Chapter 3

"Phoebe, I think I'm in deep shit. Can you meet me outside my apartment in like twenty minutes?" Helga asked through her phone. She never wanted people to come into her apartment and see how her life had turned out, not even her best friend.

"Oh yes Helga, there's something I have to tell you anywa-"

"I think I'm pregnant," Helga blurted out.

Dead silence followed on the other end after Helga confessed, until Phoebe said, "I'll be right there."

For the next twenty minutes, Helga stayed quiet, staring at the wall ahead of her. _How could I have been so stupid?_ Helga thought to herself. Her phone rang, and it was from Pheobe. "Hey Pheebs, I'll be right down. Just wait there."

"Waiting!" Phoebe said in her usual high-pitched tone.

Helga walked out of the apartment building to see Phoebe looking uncomfortable on the sidewalk.

"Hey Pheebs, sorry I had to make you wait. I know you don't like it over here." Helga understood why. The place wasn't exactly a safe place to stand and wait around, especially if you were small and innocent looking like Phoebe.

"Oh no worries, Helga. My apologies for saying this, but you don't look so good," Phoebe said concernedly. "Why don't we go to my house, where we can talk about this?"

Helga rolled her eyes. _Typical Phoebe, always wanting to talk about things_. Sarcastically, Helga said, "Criminy Phoebe! I don't want to talk about this! I just want to get a test first, and then we can talk about the oh so romantic details!"

Phoebe gave Helga a blank stare. She was used to her sarcastic clapbacks and comments, but she figured if Helga was pregnant, she was probably irritable due to the hormones. She definitely didn't want to step on her best friend's shoes during a time like this, especially if she was pregnant. "Right, silly me. Let's go to the Pharmacy!"

"Let's pick a pharmacy that is nowhere near here, so no one sees what we are buying?" Helga replied in a belittling tone.

Defensively, Phoebe replied, "Okay. But we can't just walk there, especially if we have to go way out of Hillwood."

"What? Why can't we?"

"Because you might hurt the baby-"

"Shhhh! Criminy Phoebe, don't say it so loud! And besides, I might not even be pregnant. I could just be acting all dramatic because I haven't had my period for a month. No big deal."

Phoebe gave a concerned glance at Helga, to which Helga continued, "But if you _must_ insist, we'll take the bus then."

The two friends walked across the street to the bus stop, where they waited for what felt like hours. At sixteen, Phoebe was still one of the shortest girls in the class, despite having a small growth spurt at fourteen. She looked up at Helga awkwardly, and couldn't believe that her best friend of thirteen years could actually be pregnant. But, who is the father? Phoebe made a mental note to ask Helga when she calmed down.

Once the bus came to their stop, Phoebe and Helga got in and sat in the back. Helga prayed that with every stop that the bus took, she wouldn't see anyone that she knew, which brought her to ask her friend something. "Say Pheebs, where's your lover anyway? I mean, I wasn't expecting for you to bring him along on this, but you haven't mentioned him at all today." Pheobe and Gerald had been dating since the trip to San Lorenzo back in the summer before sixth grade. Although they were on and off for most of freshman year, they rekindled their relationship, and they were a perfect couple. It made Helga envious and sick to see them love each other.

Phoebe's face went pale, and she was having a hard time conjuring up an answer. Playing with her thumbs, she said, "Well, I didn't think it would be appropriate...to...to mention him during a crisis like this."

 _What a weird response! Oh well, it does make sense,_ Helga thought to herself. "Well cry me a river, Pheebs. Hey, I think our stop is up next!"

Breathing a sigh of relief, Phoebe followed Helga out of the bus and into the pharmacy. It was the farthest that they could go with public transportation, and it was on the border of Hillwood City and the suburban town, Hudson. They wouldn't be caught dead by anyone going to this pharmacy, considering it looked run down and devoid of any customers. Helga and Phoebe walked into the pharmacy, as normal as they could. Once they found the family planning section, both sets of eyes widened. Although Phoebe was the smartest girl at Hillwood High, perhaps even the city itself, she had no familiarity with pregnancy tests. As for Helga, she just wanted to pick a test and get the hell out of there.

"So, Helga, um." Phoebe asked without making eye contact with Helga, "which one are you going to pick?"

Taking a deep breath, Helga replied, "I'm not sure, Pheebs. I'm not sure. There's so many, like, which one is better?"

Phoebe glanced around at all the tests, unsure of how to answer her friend. "Well, I don't think it necessarily matters which brand you pick, but you should at least get more than one. That way, you can have a more definitive answer. Hey, here's a three pack." Phoebe picked up the large box, and gave it to Helga.

"Eh, not a bad price either. Maybe two boxes of these? I just want to be sure," Helga said worriedly.

They walked up to the register, where an older man in a white lab coat was occupying the counter. Blushing, Helga dropped the two packs of pregnancy tests on the counter. She was not going to look at the cashier/pharmacist in the eye, not at all. Much to her dismay, the man was taking his sweet time ringing up the tests. _Criminy, how is this guy still employed? I just want to get_ _the fuck out of here!_

After what felt like an eternity to buy the pregnancy tests, plus waiting for the bus stop, Helga and Phoebe were back on the bus headed to Phoebe's house. Helga was anxious, to say the least: all she wanted to do was get off the bus and take the test. Her heart felt like it was going to explode, and waves of nausea kept coming in when the bus hit a pothole. When they finally got to the stop near Phoebe's house, Helga ran off the bus, heading for the house.

"Helga! Be careful! You don't want to-" Phoebe exclaimed.

"Shush Pheebs! Criminy, do you want the whole world to know?! Let's get inside, please. I just want to get this over with." Helga said, while walking up the steps to the door.

"Okay," Phoebe said, "Mom and Dad should still be at work, so we will have the whole house to ourselves."

 _Good_ , Helga thought, _the last thing I want is a fucking audience watching me pee on a stick_. "Okay, let's do this," Helga said as she threw off her shoes and headed for the bathroom upstairs near Phoebe's room. Phoebe followed right behind her, worried of what the universe was holding for her best friend.

"Okay, Helga. Just open up the box, and there should be instructions," Phoebe said from the other side of the closed bathroom door.

"Thanks, Sherlock. Tell me something I don't know," Helga replied sarcastically. _I really_ _should be nicer to her. She's just trying to help_ , Helga thought to herself. She opened up the box, and read the instructions. _So, basically, I take the top off of this stick, pee on it for five good seconds, put the top back on, and leave it alone for two minutes? Piece of cake, I can do this_. "Okay Pheebs, I'm gonna do this. You can go in your room, I'll be out in a sec."

"Going!" Phoebe exclaimed.

Helga sat down on the toilet, and held the stick in her hands. She stared at it, thinking of what the outcome of this would be. Her heart could nearly contain itself, and it was beating a mile a minute. She took a deep breath, took the top off the stick, and took the test. Once she was done, she laid it on the vanity of the sink, washed her hands, and left the bathroom.

"So now we wait," Phoebe said as Helga walked into her room.

After two minutes, Phoebe's phone alarm went off. She nearly jumped off her bed and was heading for the bathroom, until Helga grabbed her arm. "Can we just, wait a sec? I..I don't know if I'm ready to know yet," Helga quietly said.

Glancing at Helga, Phoebe agreed. "Of course! My apologies for being so brash. Whenever you're ready, Helga." Phoebe put her hand on Helga's arm. Helga looked at her best friend, and felt safe in that moment.

"Thanks, Pheebs for everything. I'm so lucky to have you for a friend."

"Of course, Helga! And whatever happens, no matter what the outcome is, I'll be here to help you."

Helga smiled at her friend, and with that she said, "Okay, I think I'm ready."

They both walked over to the vanity, and Helga slowly picked up the plastic stick. The words that displayed on the test were the words she was dreading to see: PREGNANT.


	5. Chapter 4

It was mostly quiet at the Sunset Arms Boarding House, except when you got to the pull-down stairs on the second floor, where laughter was emerging from the room.

"-man, it was seriously the worst move I'd ever seen! But it was so bad, that it was funny. I mean, who thinks that a movie about drunk bees is a blockbuster hit?" Gerald asked with animation. He had changed within the five years that Arnold was gone, cutting his tall hair down, sporting a goatee, and looking like he went to the gym quite a lot. He traded in his signature '33' sweatshirt to a Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls jersey, with a white shirt underneath.

"Yeah, that does sound pretty stupid," Arnold said, trying to hold in his laughter. Gerald was giving him the low down on all things pop culture, since Arnold had no references to it in San Lorenzo.

"Damn, I haven't even asked you! How were things in San Lorenzo?" Gerald asked

Arnold put his head back, and looked up at his skylight. He told Gerald all of the things he did, from helping out the Green Eyes with by building homes for them, to helping his mom create more of the cure for the sleeping sickness, and how almost every day had beautiful weather.

"Wow. You must have had a damn good time, and yet you wanted to come back here?" Gerald asked in a surprised tone.

"Well, yeah. It was the plan to always come back to Hillwood, whether that was now or two years from now for college. This city will always be my home, that won't change."

Gerald smiled at his friend, and said, "Well I'm glad you're back, brotha."

Arnold smiled back. "So, how is everyone else? Anything changed with any of them?"

Gerald put his finger on his goatee, and asked, "do you want the short version, or the long one?"

Arnold wasn't sure what that meant exactly, so he went with the short one to stay safe.

"Well, Rhonda moved to some private school after junior high, and pretty much everyone but Nadine was happy that she left; she still lives here, but won't talk to anyone from Hillwood High. Harold lost a shit ton of weight, since he is on the lacrosse team, and he works part time at the butcher's. Sid and Stinky are still pretty close, and they film pranks around Hillwood, trying to get famous on YouTube, so be careful!"

Arnold made a mental note of that, and Gerald continued, "Oh yeah, Big Patty is like, crazy popular and is dating Peapod Kid!"

Arnold's eyes went wide. "Seriously? Good for her!"

"Yeah man, it's so crazy. Sheena and Lila are really good friends, and are stoners now. Lila sells weed, in case you ever need some, but don't nark on her to anyone, 'cause she sells good shit."

"Wait, wait, wait," Arnold said while shaking his hand, "Lila, as in Lila Sawyer, sells weed?"

"Yep. She claims she does it to help out her dad, since they still aren't great monetary wise. And she's completely different, she's loud, and doesn't talk with as much politeness anymore," Gerald said matter-of-factly.

"Damn, that was unexpected. And wait, you smoke?"

"Ohhh yeah man, not often, but if I'm at a party or somethin', I will. Doesn't the jungle have weed or somethin' like that?"

Arnold shook his head and rubbed his neck. "No, we don't have anything like that. Not that I know of, anyway. I've uh, I haven't done something like that."

"Damn man! You're really missing out! I'll make sure to change that," Gerald said, as he put his arm around Arnold's shoulder.

"Uh, I'll think about it. Oh yeah, how are you and Phoebe?" Arnold said with a smile.

Blushing and carrying a wry smile Gerald replied. "We're good, man. She's just, so beautiful and so smart. We just have this thing that I think is so special. My parents love her, and Timberly feels like she has an older sister. I love her, Arnold. I really do."

Arnold smiled at his friend, "I'm happy for you, Gerald. I knew you guys were going to be a thing back in the fourth grade."

Shocked, Gerald asked, "Really?"

With a half-lidded gaze and a smile, Arnold said, "Yes."

"Say, did you have a girl back in San Lorenzo? You know, after what happened with you and Hel-"

Arnold looked at his friend with sadness filling his eyes. Gerald wished he didn't mention her name, the one that broke Arnold every time it was mentioned. Although they didn't keep in contact too much during Arnold's time in San Lorenzo, Gerald knew all too well at what happened between Arnold and Helga.

Putting a hand on Arnold's shoulder, Gerald said regrettably, "Arnold, man, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have mentioned-"

Arnold shook his head and said, "No Gerald, don't worry about it. What happened between Helga and I, well, I'm not sure what happened. I mean, she just stopped talking to me altogether. I sent her as many letters as I could, heck, I even walked deep into the city to use one of the only working payphones there were and tried to call her many times. But I didn't get anything back. I think it was all just too much for her, I don't know."

"I know. It sucks, man, I'm sorry."

Quickly changing the subject, Arnold said, "But to answer your question, I have met some girls here and there, even one of them from the Green Eyed Tribe, but, it didn't go anywhere. Most of the time it was me, I just didn't feel anything for them, but that's fine. I'm not really looking right now, anyway."

Gerald shook his head. "Mmmm, mmm, mhm! So, you're saying, that you haven't done anything with a girl but kiss and make out with Helga G. Pataki?"

Blushing and rubbing his neck, Arnold said, "No! Like, I kissed two other girls, but yeah that's about it. Plus, I was with my parents most of the time, I couldn't really do anything but kiss, even if I wanted to."

"Man, that's about the saddest thing I've heard."

Narrowing his eyes at Gerald, Arnold sarcastically said, "Thanks, best friend. I appreciate the support." Arnold then added, "Hey, even though Helga and I haven't talked, how is she, Gerald?"

Gerald looked down at his hands, and was picking at his thumbnail. Just as he was about to answer, Miles knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Arnold said.

Miles walked into his son's room, and smiled at both the teenage boys. _Arnold looks so happy_ , he thought, _I'm glad nothing's changed between him and Gerald._ Quickly moving out of his thoughts, he said to the both of them, "Just wanted to let you know that dinner's ready. We're having pizza tonight!"

Arnold smiled. He hadn't had pizza since before he left for San Lorenzo. Although he liked the food that the Green Eyed people made, nothing was better than the comfort food of pizza. Turning to Gerald, he said, "We aren't done with updates, especially Helga." Gerald nervously nodded, and followed Arnold into the dining room that was filled with the rest of the boarders and Arnold's family.

After taking all six tests, Helga stared at all of them on the floor, accompanied with the liter of soda on the floor that was used to take the tests. "I can't believe this, Pheebs. We never really used protection, I should have bought some myself. I'm so fucking stupid."

Phoebe looked at her friend in despair, and placed a hand on Helga's shoulder. "You have to tell the father, Helga."

Helga turned to her friend, and looked terrified. "Phoebe, I can't tell him. He would flip out, and I don't know what he's capable of."

"Helga, you don't know that. Who is the father if you don't mind-"

"It's Wolfgang."

Phoebe's heart jumped, and her eyes went wide. "Oh."

Phoebe's face said it all, Helga knew she was in too deep. "Yeah."

Trying to make Helga feel better, Phoebe said, "Well, you can't just not tell him, Helga. He could actually be fine with it!"

"I highly doubt that Pheebs. Even though he doesn't bully people anymore, he has said things about kids, and I just don't think he would be up for this," Helga said, while putting her head in her hands. She could feel the saltwater substance pool up in her eyes, and she started to cry.

"There there, Helga," Phoebe said while patting her back, "It's going to be okay. It will all be okay."

Helga sat up, and looked at her friend. "No it won't! Look at where I live, Pheebs! Look at my parents, they won't help me at all if I decided to keep it."

Phoebe knew that every word in Helga's statement was true. However, she was determined to make Helga feel better. "You don't know that. Why don't you just start off with telling Wolfgang? Many men are at first turned off to the idea of having kids, until it actually happens, and they step up. The same thing could happen in this situation, Helga."

Helga realized that Phoebe was right. When she was younger, she overheard Miriam say that Bob was never into kids, until they had Olga. Even though they weren't the best parents to Helga, they were pretty good to Olga. So, maybe Wolfgang would be the same? "Yeah, you're right Pheebs. Let's just get this over with." Helga pulled out her phone, and clicked on Wolfgang's contact. The phone rang, until she heard it pick up.

"Hey Helga, what's up? I told you, we can't be doing this anymore," Wolfgang said with annoyance.

Helga felt like her heart went into her stomach. _This is going to be worse than I thought_ , she said to herself, _but here goes nothing_. "No, Wolfgang. I'm not looking for a booty call. I need to talk to you. Can we meet at the park?"


	6. Chapter 5

**Hey guys, I just want to say how much I appreciate all of the reviews that have been submitted for this story! It really gives me a chance to improve on my writing and add things to the story that I didn't think about, so thank you!**

 **I also wanted to clarify on a couple of things that were brought up by one reviewer. In this story, Helga is sixteen, and as teenagers, we all make mistakes. She also doesn't have great parents to begin with, and it has gotten worse after the events of TJM (in which this story takes place). So, her parents didn't really discuss with her about sex education, since they don't really care about her anyways, and they think she is younger than what she is (which happened a lot in the series).** **Also, the Hillwood School District doesn't appear to be a great school district in the series, as there are a number of students that were held back. This would conclude that they may not have a good representation of a health class at Hillwood High School. With all of this combined, this explains why Helga** **didn't** **use contraception, as it didn't really occur to her until she got pregnant. Wolfgang didn't think about contraception for two of these reasons, as well as the fact that he doesn't have common sense.** **Also, Wolfgang doesn't live by himself, his mom is a single mother (which is presumed in the series) and she works a lot, so she is absent.**

 **I am also trying to post a chapter at least every other day or weekly, as I have so many ideas for this story and I cant** **hold it in my head forever! I really hope the clarification helped,** **and** **please keep the reviews coming! Enjoy!**

After dinner, Gerald got a call from his mother, and it didn't seem like it was going well at all.

"Mom! What are you talking about? I didn't do anything to Timberly's campfire lass outfit, honest!" Gerald defended himself, while pacing around in the dining room. There was loud murmuring on the other end of the phone.

"But I'm with Arnold, Mom! Do I have to come home?" There was even louder murmuring emerging from the phone, until Gerald hastily replied, "fine!" He hung up the phone, and looked at Arnold in despair.

"Gotta go home, huh?" Arnold asked.

"Yeah man, I'm sorry. I fucked up Timberly's campfire lass outfit. So, I threw it out, and Mom is convinced she caught me," Gerald said while closing his eyes in regret.

"But you told her you didn't do anything, why lie about it?" Arnold asked, confused.

Gerald smiled, and said, "Ah, Arnold, always trying to be the nice guy. Man, I can't admit that to my Mom, my head would be on a fucking stake!"

Arnold looked at his friend with narrowed eyes, "I guess, Gerald. Hey, why don't I walk you home? I haven't gotten a good look of Hillwood anyway."

"That'd be great, brotha. Plus, you can guard me in case Mom rips my throat out," Gerald joked.

The two opened the door and stepped to the side, allowing the various animals to race out of the door. This was something that Arnold missed, despite being annoyed by it most of the time five years prior.

"Mom, Dad, I'll be back!" Arnold hollered. He still sometimes had a hard time calling for his mother and father, since most of his life he called for his grandparents. It was a big change that he had to get used to, but it was a good one.

Arnold and Gerald walked down the steps, and Gerald pulled out his sleek phone. "Man, I gotta play you this music from this group called Migos. Jamie O showed me them a while back. They're good!" Gerald said, while looking for the right song on his phone. He touched his phone screen, and picked a song called "All Ass", and turned up the volume on his phone so Arnold could hear it.

After about a minute and a half, Arnold turned to his friend with an uncomfortable look on his face. "Um, Gerald? This is really bad."

Gerald turned to Arnold, with his eyes widened. "What? It's got a good beat, man. Don't pay any attention to the lyrics. Besides, this is how most of the music is anyway now."

Arnold looked down, and shook his head. He couldn't believe that the music of today had really degrading lyrics. He realized he would stick to his jazz music instead of trying to listen to the new genre of music.

When they finally arrived to Gerald's house, Arnold realized that they never finished their conversation earlier about Helga. He then said, "Oh Gerald? You never told me about how Helga's doing."

Gerald turned around, and looked down at his steps. Just as he was about to answer for the second time, he was interrupted by his mother.

"Gerald Martin Johannsen! Get your ass in here now!" His mother hollered, while opening up the door. She then noticed Arnold, and blushed. "Oh, Arnold! How are you dear?" She asked in a much sweeter tone.

Arnold blushed, embarrassed for Gerald, said, "Great Mrs. Johannsen. How are you doing?"

Gerald's mother smiled, and replied, "Oh, just wonderful!"

Gerald shook his head in disbelief, turned to Arnold, and said, "Man I gotta go. I'll call you tomorrow?" He held out his right hand in a thumbs up position, waiting for Arnold to get what he was doing.

Arnold smiled at his friend, and met Gerald's hand with the same position, both wiggling their thumbs. "Sure, man." Gerald then shut the door, and Arnold could hear mild shouting from the windows of the Johannsen household. He walked down the steps, turned toward the street, and that was when his eyes widened and his heart stopped.

He saw a teenage girl with long blond hair pulled into a ponytail walking towards the park across the street from Gerald's house. She wasn't wearing pink anymore, didn't have a unibrow, her hair was in a ponytail, and wore minimal makeup. She had her head down, and it looked like she wasn't all there in the moment. Arnold realized immediately who this girl was. He tried so hard to call out her name, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't cough up the name: _Helga_.

...

Helga was walking towards the park, with her head down and her arms crossed. _How am I gonna_ _do this?_ She thought to herself. Figuring that Wolfgang would not want to talk to Helga if Phoebe was there, she had her stay home, although she wished that she had someone there to keep her calm during the walk. She stared up at the sky, and saw a few birds fly beyond the trees. _How I_ _wish_ _I could be a bird, and fly away from it all_.

Helga then felt as if someone was staring at her from afar. She figured that it was Brainy, as he still stalked her from time to time, just to check up on her. She shrugged it off, and walked through the park entrance. She found a park bench that was close to the entrance, in case she needed to run off last minute, and sat down.

The sun was setting in the park, and Helga stared at it, feeling a sense of calm run through her. _You can do this, Helga ol' gir_ l, she thought to herself. It's just Wolfgang, after all.

That was exactly it, the father of her baby was Wolfgang.

She didn't know if she could do this, but Phoebe was right, she had to tell him.

"There you are, Helga. I looked everywhere in this stupid park for you. What do you want?" Wolfgang walked over, looking frustrated.

With her heart beating out of her chest, Helga took a large breath and replied, "Criminy, Wolfgang! I _am_ on a bench near the entrance. It's not my fault you couldn't find me."

Glaring at Helga, Wolfgang replied, "You're something else, you know that? So, what is it that you wanted to tell me, 'cause I gotta do a couple of things before ma comes home."

Helga's heart stopped. She wasn't sure she could do this, but she knew if she didn't do it now, she would never tell him. "Well, I um," with a shaky voice, continued, "I'm pregnant, and you're the father."

All that she remembered next was a hard blow to her face.


	7. Chapter 6

***TRIGGER WARNING* This chapter contains content regarding abuse. If this subject is sensitive to you in any way, please don't read this chapter.**

 **Hey everyone! Thank you so much for all of your reviews! I wanted to state one thing in regards to my story that one reviewer brought up. For the purpose of this story, Helga is going to keep the baby. I thought in the beginning of her toying with the idea of an abortion and such, but it just didn't flow well to me. It has nothing to do about politics, as I am pro-choice, but creative and content wise, it works better for her to be pregnant throughout the story. This chapter is also going to be as long as the other chapters** **?** **Enjoy!**

Helga woke up to bright lights accompanied with pain radiating from her face, down to her ribs. She couldn't see well, her head was killing her, and she felt very foggy. She tried to speak, but the only thing that was coming out were moans, as her throat hurt too much to talk. Helga felt tubes and wires laying on her also, which was freaking her out internally. Suddenly, a figure was walking towards her. She couldn't make out who it was at first, but as the figure got closer, she recognized the figure.

"Oh, baby sister! You're awake!" Olga exclaimed in her usual airy voice, with tears streaming down her eyes.

Because Helga couldn't say anything, she rolled her eyes instead. Although her and her sister became somewhat closer over the years, Helga couldn't process what was going on with her. She also couldn't figure out why her sister was with her, crying her eyes out.

Another figure walked in from the side of wherever she was, and as the figure got closer, she saw that it was a doctor. "Good morning, Helga. I'm Doctor McDougal, how are you feeling today?"

All that Helga could let out was a forced moan. _What the fuck is going on? Why can't I talk,_ _and why am_ _I in so much pain?_

The doctor wrote notes on her clipboard and murmured, "still can't talk. That is to be expected."

 _Expected? What is she talking about?_ Helga's heart started to race, which was replicating on one of the monitors that she was hooked up on.

"Oh, her heartbeat is elevating," the doctor said, "Helga, you need to relax. You are safe now."

As if a lightbulb went on in Olga's head, she replied to the doctor, "she may not remember what happened to her, Dr. McDougal."

Doctor McDougal nodded at this realization, saying in a relaxed tone, "Do you want to talk to your sister, or would you like me to?"

Looking at her sister, trying to hold back her own tears, Olga replied, "I'll talk to my baby sister. Thank you, Doctor."

"Of course. I will leave you two alone," Doctor McDougall said, and closed the door.

Olga moved her chair closer to Helga's bed, and softly put her hand on Helga's hand. Her hand felt cold, and small compared to Olga's. _She's just a child_ , she thought to herself, _she shouldn't have to go through something like this_. "Baby sister, can you hear me?" Olga asked wearily.

Helga let out a grunt, which Olga took for a yes. She continued, "well, you're in the hospital. A guy named Wolfgang, who is about a year older than you, hurt you pretty bad." Olga started to cry, but knew she had to be strong for her sister and continued, "I know you want the details, and you are probably wondering why you are feeling pain all over. He-" Olga was having a hard time describing to her sister what happened to her, it was as if she swallowed a lump of coal, and was trying to spit it up. Recollecting herself, she said, "he punched you in the face many times, choked you, and kicked you all over." Olga began to cry again, and couldn't stop. She turned away from her sister to pull herself together, but she couldn't bear to know what Helga went through.

Meanwhile, Helga was taking it all in, and started to piece it together. _Wolfgang did this_. She could remember telling Wolfgang she was pregnant, and saw his fist coming towards her face. Wolfgang had hit her before, back in the fourth grade, when she refused to play a game of football over the vacant lot, but that was the only time. Of all the ways that her reveal to Wolfgang could go, she didn't expect him to hit her. She closed her eyes, trying to make the flashbacks stop. Her heart monitor was racing again, _what about the baby?_

"Baby sister, take some breaths. He isn't ever going to come near you, ever again. He is at the police station, and will be heading to jail." Olga smiled at her sister, and continued, "Oh, and the baby is okay. You experienced severe stress and shock, which can be a risk, especially early on, but the doctors are monitoring it. So far, they said the baby looks good and you're six weeks along."

Helga felt relieved. _The baby is okay_ , she thought to herself. She wasn't sure what she was going to do, but she knew she wanted to keep the baby. Although Wolfgang was the father, she wanted him to never see him or her. Wolfgang hurting her hopefully kept him away from her and her unborn child for good. She then got a sudden memory of Wolfgang hurting her, and she remembered covering her stomach to protect whoever was inside it before she blacked out from shock. Suddenly, Helga's eyes widened. _If she knows about the baby, then does-_

As if Olga was reading Helga's mind, she replied, "I didn't tell Mommy and Daddy. I figured it's more appropriate that you tell them. I don't know what your plans are, whether you decide to keep the baby or not, but I am here to help with whatever you need." Although Olga was a child prodigy, the profession that she chose, which was teaching, did not pay her well. She lived with three other women to split up the rent, and she helped out her parents from time to time, since they were in a tough financial spot as well. However, she loved her sister dearly, and whatever her sister wanted to do in regards to the baby, she would try and support the best that she could.

Helga tried to smile at her sister, but it hurt too much. _It's nice that Olga wants to help me, but I don't want to pull her down, either_ , Helga thought to herself.

Olga smiled at her sister, and continued her monologue. "I called Mommy and Daddy to let you know you were here, but Daddy didn't answer, and Mommy was working." Olga put her head down, looking at her thighs as her smile went away. As she got older, and started working with underprivileged children at the Medford School District, a small city an hour from Hillwood, she realized that her parents never cared about Helga. As a result, she convinced her parents to put herself down as an emergency contact on all of Helga's forms, in case anything happened. She was lucky she did, because if she didn't, who would be here for Helga now? She then thought of something, and was going to tell Helga, until a nurse came in.

"Hello Helga! I am just going to check on your throat, and give you a dose of acetaminophen to help with the pain," the bubbly nurse said. She walked over to Helga, holding a vile of a clear liquid in her hand. The nurse walked over to the IV that Helga was hooked up to, and injected the liquid in the tube of the IV. "You should start to feel some pain relief. We unfortunately can't give you anything else, because it might hurt the baby."

 _The baby,_ Helga thought to herself, while placing a hand on her stomach. Feeling somewhat faint, all Helga wanted to do was sleep. Too much had happened within the last twenty-four hours, with the Wolfgang incident being something that she wanted to completely forget about.

The nurse moved closer to Helga, saying, "This might hurt, and I'm sorry. But, I have to check your throat to make sure everything is looking and feeling okay."

 _Alright, here goes nothing_ , Helga thought to herself. _Fuck, that hurts!_ Helga somewhat shifted uncomfortably in pain, as the nurse was moving her hands all over her throat.

"I know, dear. I'm so sorry," the nurse said regrettably. "You're going to hate me even more, but I need to have you try to talk, while I press on your vocal chords. Can you do that?"

Helga took a deep breath, and winced in pain, nodding slowly. The nurse pressed two fingers in the lower part of her neck, and Helga tried to talk. "H-H-Hiii," she said, sounding like her throat was scratched with sandpaper.

"Okay, you're good. Sorry you had to do that. Throat feels good, and your vocal cords are strained, but that should clear up within the next few days. If you don't want to use your voice to talk, here's a pen and notepad to write down things. The doctor will be back here in a few," the nurse said, handing the pen and pad to Helga, and walked out of the room.

Immediately, Helga took the pen and wrote down something on the pad, and gave it to her sister. Olga grimaced, and replied, "Helga, I don't think that's a good idea."

Helga took the pen, wrote on the pad again, and put it further towards her sister. Olga sighed, "okay, baby sister." She took out a compact mirror out of her purse, opened it, and gave it to Helga.

Helga gasped, and was shaking. _What did he do to me?_ She thought to herself, while looking at her reflection in the mirror. One of her eyes was closed shut, and very swollen with a purplish red color encompassing it. She had bruises all over her face and neck, that were a deep purple color. Her lower lip was swollen, and had dry blood on one part of the lip. Helga was trying as hard as she could to not cry, she couldn't believe that Wolfgang did this to her, and possibly tried to hurt the baby. Forcibly, she gave the compact mirror to her sister, who then hurriedly placed it back in her purse.

Trying to forget what she saw in the mirror, Helga thought about Olga, and she couldn't thank her sister enough. She realized that without her sister, she would probably be in a much worse condition than how she was, which was hard for her to imagine. She had to thank her sister, although she wished that she could do it in a better way than just writing it on paper. Although her writing wasn't the best, due to a pain that she felt from her hand, presumably from when she fell to the ground from one of Wolfgang's punches, she wrote:

 _Olga,_  
 _Thank you so much for finding me in the park, and bringing me to the hospital. I know it's hard for me to show it, but I really am grateful for you._

Helga gave the pad to her sister, who then read it. Shaking her head and laughing, she said, "I didn't bring you here, Helga. Your sweet friend used your phone to call me, and I got here as soon as I could."

 _My friend? But Phoebe wasn't with me when I was in the park_ , Helga thought to herself. She wrote down Phoebe's name on the pad, showing it to Olga, who shook her head and was smiling. Just as she was about to answer, her phone rang. "Oh darn, my work is calling me. I'll be right back, Helga." Olga walked off, answered the the phone and shut the door.

 _So_ _if it wasn't Phoebe, then who was it?_


	8. Chapter 7

After giving his witnessing statements for most of the early morning, Arnold finally left the small room, accompanied by an older police officer. He had been up all night, and was wide awake, although his mind was numb. The police officer asked him, "Do you have anyone that can pick you up, or do you need a ride?"

Arnold looked at the police officer with glazed eyes. "I don't have a phone, could I borrow one here? I just need to call my parents."

The police officer nodded, and brought him to another small room. The walls were white, there was a fluorescent light on, and a phone laid on the dingy fake wood table. "Take as much time as you need, kid," the police officer said, and shut the door.

Arnold slowly walked over to one of the plastic chairs, and sat down on it. He was trying to recollect his thoughts, as the first day in Hillwood was a whirlwind, to put it lightly. Taking a deep breath, he picked up the phone, and dialed the boarding house.

"Hello?" The man on the other line, who was Arnold's father, said in a stressed tone.

"Dad? It's me, Arnold," he said wearily.

"Arnold! Oh my God. Your mother and I were just about to go looking for you, since you didn't come back last night. Hillwood is much different than the jungle, Arnold. If you were planning on sleeping over Gerald's, you should have told us." Arnolds father replied strictly.

Arnold expected the lecture from his father, considering he told him fifteen hours prior that he would be back after walking Gerald home. However, he just wasn't in the mood to hear it, considering what happened after he left Gerald's.

"Dad, I know you're mad, and I'm sorry." Arnold continued with hesitation, "I'm at the police station."

"What!? Why are you there, what happened? We _just_ got back!" Arnold's father had a mix of fear and shock, as one of his biggest fears besides being separated from his son again was that his son would get arrested, even though he thought it would never happen.

Arnold shook his head and said, "no! Dad, it's not like that." He rubbed the back of his neck, and continued, "something happened after I walked Gerald home. It's something that I just don't really want to talk or think about right now."

Frustrated, and upset, Miles sighed. "Okay son. You will have to tell us though. Are you able to leave, or-" Miles hesitated, closing his eyes and expecting the worst, "is it so serious that you are actually in jail?"

Arnold closed his eyes, wishing he had explained this better to his father than he did. Replying quietly, he said, "no I'm not in jail. I had to give statements, but I can come home. Can you come pick me up?"

After Miles replied with a yes, Arnold hung up the phone, and left the room to face the same police officer. The officer looked at him with concern. "You may want to put something on that, son. We have ice packs here."

Arnold felt around his eye, wincing in pain as he touched it. "I'm good, thanks. Is it okay if I wait outside for my Dad? He'll be here soon."

The officer shrugged his shoulders with an indifferent look on his face and said, "Sure. If we need anything else from you, we have your number and address on file."

Arnold nodded his head and said, "okay, thanks."

The officer put his hand on his shoulders and said, "no, thank _you_."

Arnold nodded, as he knew what the officer meant. Eager to know, and figured he had an opportunity since he wasn't giving statements anymore, he asked with concern, "how is she doing? Is she alright?" For the first time since the incident, his eyes weren't hazed over.

The officer put two fingers on the bridge of his wrinkly nose, and closed his eyes. "I can't really tell you much, kid. But what I can tell you is that she's awake, and she seems to be doing good. They're holding off on visitors for now, until we get him all booked up and sent off."

Arnold knew exactly who the officer was talking about, but he didn't want to dare think about him. Quickly suppressing the flashbacks from yesterday, Arnold nodded, and left to head outside.

He stood on the stoop, breathing fast, as if the police station was suffocating him, and opening the doors into the world of Hillwood gave him oxygen. The flashbacks kept pushing through, like bits and pieces burning in his mind. As if a record suddenly stopped, Arnold heard the horn of his grandfather's car, rolling up to the sidewalk.

Arnold raised up, and walked down the steps of the station. He saw his father in the driver's seat, who expressed a mix of bewilderment and anger on his face. Arnold got in the Packard, with no words coming out of his mouth. He stared straight ahead, not looking at his father, either.

Miles couldn't believe what he saw. Just a day ago, his son, who normally was a generally positive person and a peacekeeper, now had a black eye, and looked as though he had witnessed a murder. He looked down at his son's hands, and noticed that his right hand was black and blue all over. _Did he fight_ _someone? Arnold_ _has never gotten into fights_ , _has he?_ he thought to himself. He didn't want to ask him about what happened, but as a father, he needed to know what was going on with his son. "Arnold, what the hell happened to you? You have a black eye, and your hand is bruised up," Miles asked in a serious tone.

Arnold, who was still staring ahead, replied with an exhausted tone, "I will tell you at home, Dad."

Confused on what to do, Miles put the gear of the Packard in drive and headed home.

…...

 _...Wolfgang, who was hovered over Helga kicking_ _her_ _hard, flew back forcefully...Helga then felt as though she was floating in the air. In and out of consciousness, she could hear a young man's husky voice, calling out to her. "Helga...Helga...can you hear..." Helga_ _felt as though she was then_ _placed_ _on a soft cushion, and could see a driver's seat in front of her. She_ _felt_ _a soft hand caress her face, a stark contrast from the pain she was feeling all over. She turned her head, eyes fading in and out, and saw a man with an odd shaped head, one that she was familiar with years ago. Fading out and then back in, she saw thick and wild blond hair, the sunset_ _shining on it through the window..._

Helga woke up in a sweat, breathing rapidly. She looked at the window, and saw that the sun was still up, although she wasn't sure what time it was. She turned her head slowly to her left side, and saw that Olga was sleeping in the chair beside her. Helga turned back, and stared at the ceiling. She couldn't raise out of bed, as her sides prevented her from doing this, but she couldn't believe the dream she had, or rather, the person she just dreamed about.

Helga thought to herself, _criminy,_ _I'm not on serious painkillers or anything, why am I having such a weird dream?_ Helga's heart stopped. M _aybe it wasn't a dream, maybe what I was "dreaming" about is_ _what actually_ _happened? But wait, why was Arnold there? He's in San Lorenzo, far away from here. He's not the one who brought me to the hospital, is_ _he? Nah, stop kidding yourself, Helga._

Helga closed her eyes, and tried to fall back to sleep.


	9. Chapter 8

The drive to the boarding house was quiet and tense. So many thoughts were running around in Miles' head, he couldn't process what was going on. They got back about two days ago, and his son had managed to get himself in a run in with the police. He stopped at a red traffic light, and looked at his son. Arnold was slouched in the passenger seat, his eyes glazed over. He was staring ahead, and he hadn't blinked at all since Miles first looked at him. _What happened?_ Miles thought to himself.

When they finally arrived at the boarding house, Miles opened up his door and started to head inside. However, he realized that his son wasn't following suit and was still sitting in the car, staring straight. The father walked down the steps of the boarding house, and opened up the passenger door; his son had no reaction to the sudden movement. "Arnold? Arnold." Miles hated to shout, but he needed to get his sons' attention, "Arnold!" He yelled as loud as he could.

After his father loudly called his name, Arnold turned towards Miles in a slow manner, with his eyes still glazed over. "Sorry Dad, it's-it's just.." Arnold trailed off, looking at the crack in the ground below him.

Having a hard time staying upset with him, Miles put a hand on Arnold's shoulder and said, "it's okay, son. Let's just go inside and talk about it."

Arnold looked up at his father with heavy eyes, and nodded. He got up from the passenger seat, and walked up the steps into the house.

"Arnold! Honey, what happened? Your father told me you were at the police station?" Stella asked worriedly, while running over to her son.

"Short man! What the dam hill happened to your face?" Arnold's grandfather asked in astonishment.

"Oh Kimba," Arnold's grandmother said with concern.

Throughout all of this, Arnold had his head down, and was staring at his feet. He didn't want to look at anyone, and he didn't want to talk about what happened the day before.

"Guys, let's just give him some space," Miles added calmly. "Let's just go in the living room and talk about this, instead of crowding here in the entryway."

Before Arnold and his parents moved to San Lorenzo, the parenting was split up between his grandparents and his parents. So, it wasn't uncommon to have serious discussions with the four adults. They all sat down on the couch, with Arnold sitting in the rocking chair. Feeling as though he was an exhibit at a zoo, he rubbed the back of his neck. Stella could see that Arnold was getting nervous, so she said, "whenever you're ready, honey."

…...

THE DAY BEFORE:

There she was, Helga Geraldine Pataki. The one that he loved so many years ago. He saw her walking towards the park, with her head down and looking like she was not there mentally. He tried to call out for her name, but he couldn't get the words out. This was partly because he was caught off guard that Helga was in his presence, and he was scared of what she would do if she saw him. He saw Helga turn into the park entrance and stop, slightly turning her head to the side. Arnold ducked behind a car that was parked on the street, so she couldn't see him. He saw her shrug her shoulders, and continued into the park.

Arnold got up from where he was hiding, and stood there for a couple of minutes. _Maybe I should go in the park and say hi_ , he thought to himself. He closed his eyes, shaking his head and adding to his thoughts, n _o._ _That's weird and creepy. Nothing's worse than your ex-boyfriend showing up in the same park as you and saying, "hey miss me? I haven't seen you in five years!"_

He turned towards home, and started to walk. He suddenly heard a piercing scream, one that he knew all too well when Helga confessed her love of him a second time, and he didn't want to acknowledge it.

"Wolfgang, please stop!" A voice cried out.

 _That's...that's Helga. Oh_ _my God, that's Helga!_ Arnold thought to himself. His heart started to race, and a rush of adrenaline ran through him. He turned back towards the park, and ran as fast as he could, following the screams that he was hearing. He was also hearing some sort of other noise while he was running through the park, almost like someone hitting a punching bag. _What was that?_

He turned to his left, and saw exactly what he was looking for. Upon what he saw, his chest felt like it was collapsing and he couldn't breathe.

Helga was in a fetal position, covering her stomach and crying. Wolfgang was kicking her severely, one could hear every thud that was hitting Helga's small body. "You're a fucking slut, Helga!" Wolfgang screamed, "You fucking trapped me!" There were two bystanders from afar, who put their hands over their mouths in shock.

Immediately, Arnold ran towards Wolfgang, whose focus was only on hurting Helga, and pushed him off of her as hard as he could. Wolfgang fell to the ground, and looked up at who just pushed him to the ground.

"What the fuck? Oh, it's you, the faggot with the weird fucking head! What happened to you? You realized you had a severe birth defect and ran away?" Wolfgang asked humorously, while getting up from the ground. He then formed his hand into a fist, and punched Arnold in the eye twice, with Arnold stumbling backwards.

Arnold felt a fire deep in his stomach, one that he had only felt before, when La Sombra took him and his classmates hostage in San Lorenzo. He was young at the time, and tried his best to fight back, without using physical violence. However, he was more than angry, he was filled with deep hate. He couldn't believe that Wolfgang was still hitting people, let alone a woman, a woman that Arnold knew for most of his life. Arnold grunted, ran towards Wolfgang, and gave him a hard punch to the side of his head. Wolfgang closed his eyes, and fell to the ground.

Arnold stood over Wolfgang, panting. He wanted to punch him more, and wanted Wolfgang to hurt the way he hurt Helga. _Stop, Arnold_ , he thought to himself, _go to Helga_. Arnold turned around, ran to Helga, and kneeled on the ground. She was whimpering, and it looked as though she was in and out of consciousness. He looked at her face and neck, it was starting to bruise up. He didn't want to see Helga like this, he couldn't bear it at all. "Helga, I'm here. It's going to be okay," Arnold said, while stroking her face and trying his best not to cry. He could hear one of the bystanders murmuring, and was upset that they did nothing to help. Figuring that they could do something for once in this situation, he yelled, "Someone please call the police! She's badly hurt."

Just as Arnold said that, an individual took out his phone, and started to call someone, which ended up being 9-1-1. As soon as the bystander hung up his phone, sirens were heard throughout the park.

Two police officers and an EMT team came running into the park, with the EMT team rolling a stretcher. Arnold was holding Helga's small, frail hand, while the EMTs and the police officers came toward them.

"What happened here?" One of the officers asked in a neutral tone, looking at Arnold suspiciously.

Arnold was about to answer, when the other bystander interjected. "This young girl was getting beaten by the man over here," she said, while pointing to Wolfgang's passed out body. She then continued, "that guy right there came in and defended the girl," she said, while pointing to Arnold.

One of the EMTs ran over to Wolfgang, and started examining him. "He looks like he's just passed out from shock."

One of the officers walked over to the EMT near Wolfgang, and said, "Okay, check him out here while we get statements from these two," as he was pointing to the bystanders. He continued, "Once we get confirmation on what happened, we will book him up after and notify his guardians." The EMT nodded, and started to check on Wolfgang, while the officer started talking with the two bystanders.

The other officer crouched down, looking at Arnold and then Helga. "She doesn't look good, she'll need to go to the hospital ASAP." She looked at Arnold, and said, "Do you know her, or were you just someone that saw what was going on and defended her?"

Arnold paused for a minute, as the adrenaline in his body was starting to slow down. He looked at the officer and said, "I know her, we grew up together." Arnold closed his eyes, placed his head down, and said, "I was on the street near the park and I heard screaming. It sounded like her, and I came in the park to check it out. That's when I saw-" Arnold started shaking, with tears streaming down his face. He couldn't say the last part of what happened between Wolfgang and Helga.

The officer understood what Arnold meant. She got up, as the EMTs moved in to work on Helga. "Sir, you have to step aside so we can work on her," one of the EMTs said to Arnold hurriedly. Arnold quickly moved out of the way, and let the EMTs do what they had to do. They took out a yellow board of some sort, and placed it next to her, turning her to one side and sliding the board underneath her. The two EMTs then picked up the board, with Helga on it. They placed her on the stretcher, and got her buckled up, ready for her to go into the ambulance.

Arnold noticed while the EMTs were placing Helga on the stretcher, that her phone fell onto the ground. Once they started moving the stretcher out of the area, he picked up her phone, and walked over to the female police officer. "Her phone dropped while they were putting her on the stretcher. Is it okay if I call her parents to let her know where she's going?"

Shocked that this young man wanted to be so involved with the injured young woman, she replied, "Um, sure. But after that, you will have to come down to the station with one of us."

Arnold understood, and said, "Okay." He looked at her flip phone, and went to her contacts section. He wasn't too familiar with how to use a phone, but he knew how to make a simple phone call at least. _Let's try the beeper store first. Mr. Pataki should be there_ , he thought to himself while dialing the number that he knew by heart. However, when he dialed the number, an inactive number dial tone followed. _That's weird, maybe the business has a different number?_ Arnold asked himself. He went to Helga's contacts, and saw Bob and Miriam's contact on the list. Figuring that they may not answer, as well as the police officer was starting to get antsy, he called the only other family member that he knew would come to Helga's aid.

"Hello Baby Sister!" Olga said excitedly.

"Hey Olga, it's me, Arnold," he said exhaustedly.

"Oh! Baby Sister's sweet friend! Why are you calling on her phone?" Olga asked.

Arnold rubbed the back of his neck, took a deep breath, and said, "Helga has been hurt, bad. She's headed to Hillwood Hospital and she needs someone there. I knew you would answer, so that's why I called. Any chance that you can get to the hospital soon?"

Olga was silent, and didn't know what to say, "Oh. My poor Baby Sister," she started to choke up, "I will be there as soon as I can, thank you." She started to cry, and hung up the phone.

Arnold flipped the phone closed, and gave it to the female officer that he was talking to earlier. "Thank you. We will make sure to give this back to her," she said. "I'm headed over there now, and you will be going with Officer Taft." She walked towards the ambulance, while the other officer, who was presumed to be Officer Taft walked over to Arnold.

"Okay, kid. Let's get down to the station," he said neutrally.

…...

After Arnold told his parents and grandparents what happened, they looked at him with concern and sadness. Miles felt especially bad, because he thought that Arnold committed a crime when all he did was defend his old girlfriend from getting beaten to death.

"Now that I've told you what happened, can I go upstairs?" Arnold asked in a depressed and exhausted tone.

Miles and Stella, who at this point, didn't know what to say or do, said, "Of course."

Arnold got up slowly, and went upstairs to his bedroom. When he got to his room, he shut the door, and slid down the back of it, laying on the ground. He closed his eyes, and kept flashing back to the incident and then to when him and Helga were kids. _Why didn't I go into the park sooner?_ Arnold asked himself. _I should have stopped her, and talked to her before this happened. Why did I ever leave here? I could have protected her more if I never left. This is all my fault, I should have done more for her..._

Arnold moved to his bed, laying in it with his clothes on, and cried himself to sleep.


	10. Chapter 9

**A thousand thank yous to all of you that have written reviews! Nothing has made my day more than knowing that you all genuinely like this story!**

 **I also want to thank you guys for being patient, as I have had a hard time getting this chapter out. Don't worry, I don't have writer's block or anything, it's just that life kind of got in the way a bit. I work and go to school full time, so it was just a busy week.**

 **However, I am back, and I am hoping to finish the next chapter this weekend, so I won't keep you waiting (although my favorite football team, the Patriots are in the Super Bowl, so I'm not exactly sure if I will get it out for this weekend- just kidding!)**

 **I really hope you enjoy this chapter! Keep the reviews coming : )**

 _Wolfgang punched her right in the face, Helga falling to the ground. She touched her face, looking up at Wolfgang in shock. Hovered over her, Wolfgang punched her again and again…Don't hurt the baby..don't hurt_ _my_ _baby…_

Helga woke up panting, with sweat dripping down her face. She sat up, her sides allowing her to do so, but she inevitably regretted it. _God damn, that hurts_ , Helga thought to herself as she winced. Just as she was going to recollect herself and think about the dream she had, Olga ran over to her aid.

"Oh baby sister! Are you alright?"

Testing the waters on her voice, she said, "I'm, I'm okay. Just had a dream, that's all." Her voice still sounded weak, but it didn't hurt as bad as the day before.

"Baby sister, you have PTSD most likely. I studied this extensively during my Master's program. You will have these recurring nightmares for quite a while, perhaps forever, if you don't seek counseling for it," Olga said in a higher than normal tone.

Having no idea what to say in that regard, Helga grunted, and realized that she was extremely hungry. _God could I go for some chili cheese fries right now, oh boy_. "Hey Olga, am I on any dietary restrictions or anything? I'm starving right now," Helga said, wincing a little on that last word.

Olga looked at her sister, with a smile creeping on her face. "Well of course you're hungry! You're eating for two, now. I'll order something off the food menu here," Olga said, while picking up the pamphlet and looking at it.

Helga blushed, and looked down at her stomach. She hadn't had a lot of time to process that she was going to be a mother, especially due to the fact that Wolfgang interrupted that. _What if I'm not a good mother? What if I'm like Miriam?_ Helga thought to herself briefly.

Interrupting Helga's thoughts, Olga added, "Oh, by the way, Helga, Mommy and Daddy are on their way over here. The police want to ask you some questions about what happened, but they need you to have Mommy and Daddy here, because you're underage."

Helga's eyes widened, and she suddenly felt sick to her stomach. _Bob and Miriam are coming here? Do they know that I'm pregnant? I have to talk about what happened with Wolfgang? I don't think I can do this…_

Trying to escape the panic and racing thoughts rattling her mind, Helga said, "I have to pee."

Olga's face turned red. "Oh, of course! Let me help you up, Baby Sister," she said, while walking towards Helga.

Helga held up her hand, and said to Olga, "I'm fine. I got it." She raised the top of her hospital bed as high as it could go, and paused, trying to gain up as much strength as she could. She pulled off the blankets, wincing because of the fast movement that pulled on her ribs. She put one foot on the cold floor, and looked up her sister in deep vulnerability. "Okay, I need your help. Criminy, this is ridiculous!"

Olga ran over to Helga, and held the right side of her back and her right arm gently for support. Helga felt more secure, and placed the other foot on the floor, lifting herself out of the bed afterwards. Feeling steady with Olga at her side, Helga walked into the bathroom, and sat on the toilet. "I got it from here, Olga. I'll holler for you when I'm done," Helga muttered.

"Okay Baby Sister," Olga said heartily, "I will be right on the bed."

Once Olga closed the door, Helga breathed out heavily, as if she was holding her breath for an eternity. The whole time that Olga was assisting Helga to the bathroom, Helga was trying her hardest to show her tough exterior. However, she had never felt more ashamed and embarrassed in her life. As tears started to pool in Helga's eyes, she thought, _this fucking sucks. I am in so much pain, I look like I cross mutated with something, and I can't even go to the bathroom on my own! I don't like this at all…_

Figuring that Olga would be knocking on the door any minute, as well as her parents would most likely be arriving soon, Helga sniffled, and hollered for Olga. Olga ran in, and helped Helga off the toilet, and brought her back to the hospital bed. Once Helga got all settled back in bed, Olga said, "Mommy and Daddy are five minutes out. The police are talking with the doctors and nurses, and you will be next for questioning. Are you ready for this?"

The truth was that Helga wasn't ready at all. She was experiencing all of the negative side effects from Wolfgang's incident, that the last thing she wanted to do was talk about what happened. Even the mention of his name made her sick to her stomach. However, she knew that her statements would be the final kicker in keeping Wolfgang in jail. If she wanted to keep her and her unborn child safe, she needed to do this. Not for herself, but for her baby. "Yeah," she said shakily, "I think I am."

Just as she said that, Miriam walked into the room, with an uninterested look on her face. "B couldn't make it," she said with a monotone, "he got caught up with something." She sat down in the seat farthest away from the hospital bed, and looked out the window.

 _Yeah, he had to finish The Young and The Restless, that's what caught him up_ , Helga thought.

Olga looked at her mother, with a surprised look on her face. "Mommy? Do you see Baby Sister? Isn't this terrible?" Olga was trying to test to see if Miriam even cared at all.

Miriam turned her head towards Helga with glazed eyes, and said, "It's so sad, yes." She then turned her head back to the window.

Olga looked at the teal and white tile floor, and shook her head. Helga wasn't surprised, but she was a little disappointed that her mother couldn't say a few more words. Just as she was going to say a nasty comeback at her mother, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Helga said nervously.

A female police officer walked in, and smiled at Helga. "Hello Helga, I'm Officer Vazquez from the Hillwood Police Department," the officer said softly, while showing her badge.

Helga smiled at the officer and nodded, signaling for her to continue.

"I'm going to be asking you some questions about what happened two days ago." The officer turned towards Miriam, and asked, "Are you Miriam Pataki?"

Miriam was suddenly not looking out the window anymore, and looked like her face brightened up. She got up from her seat and held out her hand to shake Officer Vazquez's. "Yes, I am her mother. It is very nice to meet you."

Crossing her arms, Helga looked at her mother, and rolled her eyes. _Of course she's going to act like a normal mother in front of the cops,_ she thought to herself _, that's the only way to keep those assistance checks coming._

Officer Vazquez turned back toward Helga, and sat down in the seat nearest her bed. She asked, while taking out a small recorder, "Is it okay if I sit here?" Helga nodded back, and the officer continued, while pressing play on the recorder. "Okay, so the first thing I want to ask is what you were doing in the park on August 5th?"

 _Wow, she really just dives right into it_ , Helga thought to herself sarcastically, as her heart rate was increasing. With her voice shaking, she replied, "I- I was going to the park to talk to-to-W-Wolfgang." It look every bit of strength in her from not crying at the speech of his name.

The officer nodded, and added, "Why did you need to talk to him?"

Helga froze. _What if Miriam doesn't know about this part? Stop being a pussy, Helga. You can do this, ol' girl._ "I was going to tell him how I was," she paused, "pregnant, and he was the father." Helga looked down at her hands, not wanting to make eye contact with Miriam.

"What happened from there, Helga?" Officer Vazquez asked softly.

Helga took a deep and loud breath, trying not to become triggered from what she about to talk about. "He," she paused, closing her eyes and shaking her head violently.

Olga put a hand on her shoulder, and said, "It's okay, Baby Sister."

Helga looked at her sister, and then closed her eyes again, taking a slow inhale. "He punched me in the face, but that's all that I remember." Helga suddenly felt exhausted, both physically and emotionally. She didn't want to talk about the dreams, or the fact that she was afraid to be touched without her asking, or the pain she felt all over. She wanted this interrogation to be over, and never talked about again.

"Are you sure that's all you remember?" The officer asked neutrally.

Helga looked at Officer Vazquez straight in the face, and said, "Yeah. I have dreams of Wolfgang kicking me and stuff, but I don't know if that's me just dreaming of what happened or what actually happened."

The officer looked at Helga, turning off the recorder, and said, "Okay, thank you for the statement."

Not regarding the officer's thanks, Helga replied, "So what happens now?"

"Well, all of the statements that we have gotten from everyone is a clear match. Especially since he harmed both you and your unborn child, he will be charged for assault and battery. However, the judge may give him a higher charge based on all the evidence. If his lawyer decides to fight the charges, you and the other witnesses will be asked to testify."

Helga swallowed hard. She wanted this nightmare to be over, so she could get on with her life, or at least try to. The officer could see the panic in her face, and said, "Let's just take it one step at a time though. Testifying may or may not happen." Helga smiled, with relief spreading across her face. The officer smiled back at her, and said, "I have to get back to the station. If you need anything, here is my number," she said while handing Helga a business card. She walked over to Miriam and Olga, shaking both their hands. She then headed towards the door and said, "It was nice meeting all of you. Helga, if anything comes up, you know who to call."

Helga held up the card, and the officer nodded, closing the door behind her.

Once the officer left, Miriam stood up, and walked towards Helga. Helga was taken aback by this, considering that her mother never wanted anything to do with her. Miriam looked at Helga and said, "I'm not upset that you're pregnant. Quite frankly, I don't really care, and if you want to keep it or not, that's your choice." Helga exhaled in relief, happy that her mother was not mad. Miriam continued in a monotone, "However, B and I can barely support you as it is, so if you are expecting me to help you, that won't happen. You can live at the house, but that's it."

Olga violently got up from her chair, and shouted to Miriam, "Mommy! Are you serious? You can't even help her out a little bit? Who do you think-"

Helga interrupted Olga, and said exhaustedly, "Olga, it's fine. I don't need Miriam's help, I will try to figure out a way to do this myself." She turned to her mother, and said, "At least you're letting me live in your house, and that's all I need."

Miriam turned to Olga, her eyes wide in surprise that her favorite daughter was calling her out. She then turned back to Helga and said, "Yeah, exactly. You may want to get more hours at the diner though, to support yourself." Miriam then walked out the door, without saying another word.

Helga wasn't too surprised at Miriam's harsh tone towards her. Since she became the only spouse that worked in the Pataki household, Miriam started to develop a harsh and more distant personality, a personality that she had when she watched over the beeper business for a short time when Bob had a back injury. The good news was that at least she had a home still. However, she would have to get more money to support herself, which reminded her of something. _Shit, I gotta call the diner and tell them about why I haven't been in_ , Helga thought to herself.

Just as Helga reached for her cell phone on the nightstand to call her work, it reminded her of the dream she had the night before. Figuring this was a good time to ask Olga, since she was already vulnerable, Helga asked, "Hey Olga?"

Olga, who was sobbing, said, "Yeah?"

"Who um, who brought me to the hospital? Like, you said my friend called you?"

Olga wiped her tears, and a small smile formed out of the corner of her face. "It was your sweet friend that's a guy." Olga wanted Helga to guess a little bit, since she thought it was nice to see Helga so interested in who brought her to the hospital, since it distracted her from everything else that was happening to her.

 _A guy?_ Helga thought to herself _, but the only other guy that I really talk to is Gerald_. _Unless it was Brainy? Yeah, it was probably Brainy._ "Criminy Olga, just tell me! I'm not sure what guy would come to my aid," Helga said sarcastically.

Olga laughed, and said, "Silly Baby Sister, it was Arnold!"


	11. Chapter 10

**Hey guys, as promised, here is the next chapter! Fan Fiction was having a bit of an issue with uploading a story, but I finally got it to work! Happy Super Bowl Sunday, Go Patriots! I hope you enjoy it, and keep the reviews coming!**

Helga's heart stopped, and her body was trembling. "Arn-Arnold?" _What the fuck Olga, that's not something to joke about_ , Helga thought to herself, while glaring at her sister. "That's not true and you know it. Arnold's in San Lorenzo, the place he's been living for five years."

Shaking her head slowly, Olga laughed. "Helga, it's true! I was shocked myself, but he was the one that called me from your phone to tell me where you were."

Not sure if Olga was telling the truth or not, Helga decided to take this to the next level. "Oh yeah? If he was the one who helped me, why hasn't he been at the hospital, huh?" Helga asked sarcastically.

Olga looked down at the floor, with a sad look on her face. "Well, the police didn't want you to have any visitors besides your immediate family until _that demon_ was fully behind bars, and Arnold was at the police station for questioning."

Helga crossed her arms, and looked away from her sister. "I don't believe you, Olga."

Olga walked over to Helga, at looked at her straight in the eye. With a serious tone, she said, "I swear on your unborn child that Arnold was the one that called me. From what I got from the police, he defended you from Wolfgang too."

Helga's heart felt warm, and she wasn't sure what to say. _Arnold was there, and he basically saved me? But, when did he get back?_ Helga asked herself.

Just as she was going to go deep into thought, she heard a knock at the door. "Oh um, come in," Helga said quietly, still unsure of how to process what Olga had just told her.

"Hello Helga, I'm Doctor Thomas, an Obstetrician and Gynecologist," the older woman said in a calm voice, while shaking Helga's hand. "I have been keeping an eye on your baby, and I am here to do a checkup." She turned back into the hallway, and brought in a machine with a computer on it.

Helga had never been to an OB/GYN before, however, she was glad that she would be able to get some news on her baby. "Okay, um. How is that gonna work? I haven't really done something like this before."

The doctor nodded in understanding, and said, "Well, we are going to do an ultrasound, however, because you are about six weeks along, we will have to do this vaginally. We only determined how far along you were by doing an exterior exam, but now that you are awake and such, we can get a better look."

Helga blushed, and looked down at the blanket in front of her. _Shit, she's gonna see everything_ , Helga thought to herself. _Well, I guess she has to do what she has to do._ "Okay, that's fine," Helga said with a crack in her voice at the end.

The doctor wheeled the machine next to Helga, and brought in two metal poles with feet. She plugged the stirrups into her hospital bed, and turned on the machine. "Helga, could you please raise up the bed a little bit? I will tell you when." Helga turned the up button on her remote, until the doctor told her to stop. Doctor Thomas walked over to the hospital closet, and took out a white sheet, while looking at Olga. She turned to Helga, and asked, "Do you want your sister here for this?"

Helga looked at Olga, who seemed disappointed that the doctor would ask such a thing. Helga really had no opinion on the matter, since Olga was the only one who seemed to care about her. "Yeah, she's good to stay. Actually, Olga, can you come sit closer?"

Olga's face brightened, and moved her seat next to Helga on her left side, as the machine was on Helga's right. Olga took Helga's hand, and squeezed it while smiling at her.

Interrupting the sister bonding moment, Doctor Thomas said, "Okay, Helga. I need you to put the head of your bed down, and place your feet on these stirrups here," as the doctor pointed to the metal poles that were sticking out of Helga's hospital bed. Taken aback by this, Helga put the head of her bed down, lying flat, and placed her feet on the stirrups, wincing a little in pain, as it strained her beaten muscles. She felt her area completely exposed, which made her internally shriek in embarrassment. The doctor then placed a sheet over her legs, and washed her hands. She typed on the keypad that was attached to the machine, and the computer screen lit up. Doctor Thomas then put a glove on her left hand, and took a medium sized thick wand with a plastic liner on it, asking Helga, "Do you want me to put this in, or would you like to? It is completely up to you."

"Uh, I'll do it," Helga said nervously. The doctor squeezed a bottle filled with liquid, and a jelly substance came out, engorging the top of the wand. She put the wand underneath the white sheet, and said "Okay, just let me know when you have it, just make sure not to touch the jelly." Helga felt the base of the wand, and told the doctor. She then inserted it deep into her, and the doctor took it from there. A dark oval with a very small gray circle embedded in the dark oval, appeared on the screen. Doctor Thomas pointed to the gray circle and said, "This is your baby right here, Helga."

Helga's eyes widened, and she couldn't believe it. _That's my baby_ , she thought to herself, _the baby looks so small…_

Olga was crying, and shrieked while still holding Helga's hand, "Oh, Baby Sister! How cute!"

Helga turned to Olga and smiled, however, she was nervous about her baby, which prompted her to ask Doctor Thomas, "Is everything looking okay with the baby?"

The doctor moved the wand around, making Helga squirm, as she could feel the movement in her. Doctor Thomas stared at the screen intently, and said, "Yes. Everything looks pretty good, and you are about six weeks along." The doctor took the wand slowly out of Helga, and asked, "Now before I go in about what to do next, I need to ask this for legal reasons. Are you planning on carrying this child to full term?"

Helga looked at the doctor with serious eyes, and said while raising the head of the bed back up, "Yes, I do, however, I don't know if the insurance that I'm on will cover stuff like this."

Doctor Thomas looked at Helga, and said, "Actually, your insurance does cover this, as well as your whole hospital visit, since it is paid for by the government and such. You can also apply for WIC as well, which can help you with things for your pregnancy, as well as when your baby is born." The doctor smiled and continued, "I do want to do another check up on you and the baby before you leave here, as you did experience tremendous stress, which can be hard on an early pregnancy. You will also want to get set up with an OB/GYN for prenatal visits, which will be once a month. You are more than welcome to stay with me, or I can give you the name of a few that will take your insurance. I am also going to prescribe prenatal vitamins, which you should start taking today."

The doctor and Helga talked for a while about her pregnancy, and gave her pamphlets to educate Helga, as well as a print out of the ultrasound. Once the doctor left, Helga laid back down in her bed, and looked at the ultrasound picture. _Hey you_ , Helga said in her head towards the picture, _you're a strong one. I wonder where you get that from._ Helga laughed to herself, and turned to the nightstand where her phone was. She flipped it open, and saw that she had a number of missed calls and texts from Phoebe, as well as the Diner that she worked at. _Criminy! I got a lot of calls to make!_

Staring at the phone, thinking about what Olga told her earlier, she turned to Olga and asked, "Do you think Arnold is at his old house?"

Olga looked at her sister questioningly, and said, "I am not sure, Helga. Why do you ask?"

Helga put her head down and closed her eyes. She figured that Olga had already seen her at her most vulnerable, so she added to it. "Well, I was thinking about calling him. Just to say, 'thank you', you know?"

"I think that would be very nice, Helga."

"Yeah I think so too," Helga said with a small smile, and continued, "But I gotta call my job first and then Phoebe, since she's been stalking me since I got in here." Helga pressed a button, and started her call escapade.

….

Arnold stayed in his room all day, not wanting to talk to anyone or deal with the outside world. All he did since he got up from crying himself to sleep the night before was stare at the sky through his skylight. He felt numb: he had no thoughts emerging in his head, except for the thoughts of Helga and if she was alright, and he felt imprisoned to stay in his bed. His parents and grandparents had tried to come in and talk to him, but he didn't budge, he just kept staring at the ceiling. The boarders even tried their best to help out Arnold, since he had helped them out so many times in his youth.

A knock emerged from the other side of his door, and he didn't say anything. After a couple of minutes, the door opened, showing that it was Gerald who knocked minutes earlier. He walked over to the bed, sat on the edge of it, and said, "Hey man, how are you doing?"

For the first time since last night, Arnold rose up from his bed, and looked at Gerald with exhausted eyes. Gerald had never seen Arnold like this before, as he was always the positive one, and realized he wasn't okay at all. Thinking that it wasn't best to bring up what happened with Helga, as Phoebe told him what had happened when she found out from Olga. Instead, Gerald started to talk about random things to get Arnold's mind off of it.

"Gerald, I appreciate what you're doing, really I do, but I just want to be left alone right now," Arnold said somberly, while putting his head down.

Gerald looked at his best friend in despair. Arnold was like a brother to him, and it upset him that Arnold was upset. However, he knew how his friend got, and if Arnold needed help, he would let him know. "Okay man. If you need anything, you know I will be over in a millisecond."

"Thanks, Gerald."

Once Gerald left, Arnold laid back in bed, looking back up at the sky. Just as he was about to close his eyes to fall asleep, his phone rang. _Who's this now?_ Arnold thought to himself angrily, as he walked towards the phone to pick it up. He breathed out his frustrations, picked up the phone, and said in a calm but sad voice, "Hello?"

A quiet and scratchy voice replied on the other side. "Hey, Football Head."


	12. Chapter 11

**Hey guys! So** **unfortunately,** **my Patriots lost, but it's** **okay! The Eagles played a much better game, and they deserved the win...**

 **I know you guys couldn't wait for the next chapter, so I figured I would give it to you early! School is kicking my ass at the moment, so the next installment may not happen until next week (I'm sorry!) However, I couldn't let you guys down, and I couldn't keep myself from not writing this down, so here you go!**

Arnold felt like he was frozen in time, and his mind went blank. Although it didn't sound like her due to the circumstances, he knew exactly who was on the other end of the line. "H-Helg-" The phone slipped out of his hands. He frantically picked it up, and sat down on the couch, with the phone clutched in his hand. "Helga, how-how are you feeling?" He was surprised that Helga called him, however, he also felt bad because he didn't call her first, although he had no idea if he could because of the police, as well as the fact that she may not have wanted to speak to him. There was so much that Arnold wanted to say, but he didn't want to overbear her, or freak her out.

Helga didn't think she would be this nervous to talk to someone that she has known her whole life, however, it had been years, and she still was not sure how to take the fact that he defended her from Wolfgang. _His voice sounds so deep,_ she thought to herself, _I wonder what else about him has changed_. Her pounding heartbeat was draining out her thoughts, so she shook her head to clear herself, and replied, "Oh, you know. Just peachy," Helga said in a calm but sarcastic manner.

Arnold tried his hardest not to laugh in front of Helga, but he thought it was amusing that even in the horrible situation that Helga was in, she still managed to find a way to be sarcastic. Figuring out what to say next, Arnold replied, "I'm glad you are feeling better." _Smooth move, dumbass. She isn't feeling better, and you know it_ , he thought to himself. What he really wanted to ask her is how she was doing emotionally, and if she needed anything. He wanted to know how she has been these past five years, and if anything changed with her.

Helga's body was shaking with nervousness. _Maybe this wasn't a good idea after all, why is this so awkward? Just get this over with, and move on_ , Helga thought to herself. "Well, listen Arnold, my sister told me what happened, and how you got Wolfgang to stop hurting-" Helga paused, as she started to silently cry, thinking back to that fateful day. She was trying to stop herself from crying so that Arnold wouldn't hear her, but she couldn't.

After a few moments, Arnold could tell that it was hard for Helga to talk about what happened. He couldn't imagine what she had gone through, and he could not understand why scum like Wolfgang would hurt a woman. In a quiet and calm tone, he said, "Helga, it's alright. You don't need to talk about it. What happened to you was without a doubt, horrible. You don't need to talk about anything if you don't want to."

As if Arnold had worked magic on her, Helga immediately felt her depression and anxiety suppress. _Leave it to Arnold to make me feel better_ , Helga thought to herself humorously. "Well, I just wanted to say thank you for- for stopping him."

Arnold paused, and looked down at the ground. "I'm no hero, Helga," Arnold said, while trying his hardest not to cry. He couldn't do this now, no, Helga was definitely the one who needed the help, not the other way around. He couldn't help but blame himself for what happened, but this wasn't the time or place to bring that up. Continuing, he said, "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time, and I'm glad I was."

Helga couldn't help but smile. _I'm so glad he's not here to see this_ , she thought to herself. Despite what she was feeling, she couldn't help but feel some resentment towards him. Yes, he saved her from Wolfgang, but she still felt abandoned by him. _Helga, you didn't return his letters or phone calls, either_ , she thought to herself. Quickly suppressing her thoughts, she added, "Well, I just wanted to say thanks, and I probably should get going."

Arnold nodded his head, and quietly said, "Oh, okay."

Feeling the awkwardness again, Helga held her breath, and said, "Okay, well by-"

"Wait!" Arnold said, a little too enthusiastically.

"Sheesh, what's the rush?" Helga asked sarcastically.

"I uh, I understand if you don't want to, but-" Arnold paused, and thought to himself, _is this even appropriate to ask?_ _I guess it doesn't hurt to try._ "Like, I could see you at the hospital or something and catch up."

Helga wasn't sure what to say out loud, but she sure had a lot to say internally. _So, he thinks that because I talk to him one time, that he can hang out with me and we can go back to how we were? No, he's not gonna_ _do that. I don't even know if he is just visiting this shithole or not, but I am not going to be hurt again. I have dealt with too much of this shit to last five lifetimes._ Finally figuring out what she was going to reply with, she said sarcastically, "Well for your information, bucko, I have bruises all over my face and body, and I can barely talk, because I was choked, as you can tell. I just got the shit beaten out of me by some guy because I told him I was pregnant with his child. So yeah, I'm not going to go out with another guy and put my whole trust into him just for him to leave again, which is exactly what you did, if you don't remember. I have too much to deal with right now to rekindle anything with you. I shouldn't have called you-"

"Helga, I didn't...I didn't mean it like that," Arnold said in a sad tone. However, he was too late. She had hung up the phone. _Nice going, asshole. Not a good move at all..Wait, did she just say she's pregnant?_

 _..._

Helga slammed her phone back onto the nightstand and growled in anger. "Fucking a!"

Olga looked away from her magazine towards Helga with a look of concern on her face. "Baby Sister? Are you alright? You can't get stressed, it's not good for the baby."

"Well, I shouldn't have called Arnoldo okay?" Helga snapped.

Surprised, Olga asked, "Why Helga?"

Helga crossed her arms and shook her head. "He literally asked me basically if we could hang out and catch up, like he wants to rekindle something. I'm in the hospital for fuck's sake, he should know, since he was the almighty savior." At this point, Olga started to chuckle, which made Helga even more upset. "How the fuck is this funny?"

"Helga, he hasn't seen you in five years. Granted, it was probably the wrong time to ask, but he probably just wants to see you. What's so wrong with that? Also, did you tell him you were pregnant?"

"Well, I guess. And yeah, I did, it just slipped out. He probably didn't hear me because he's pretty dense from what I remember. But just because he 'saved' me, doesn't mean I have to bend over backwards for him," Helga said stubbornly.

Olga looked at her sister, and said, "This is Arnold we are talking about, Baby Sister. He wouldn't expect you to bend over backwards for him. And, just because you guys dated for year and he left, doesn't mean you have to make anything romantic."

Helga was tired of talking about the subject, and she felt hungry, as well as nauseous. "Well, I'm going to order something. Can we get like pizza or something, like from an actual restaurant?"

Olga again laughed at her sister, and said, "Sure Helga. What kind were you thinking of getting?"

Helga put her index finger on her chin and thought for a moment. "Oh, I know! An extra-large meat lover's pizza with jalapenos, and a side of breadsticks. Oh, and maybe some cinnamon sticks too!"

Questioning her sister's choices, she asked Helga, "Are you sure you are going to eat all that?"

Helga frowned at her sister. "Of course I will! I'm starving, and I _am_ eating for two," she said, smiling at Olga.

Olga ordered the pizza, and it took about twenty minutes for it to come. When the pizza finally arrived, Helga devoured almost all of the pizza except for two slices, as well as the breadsticks. Just as she was about to finish up the cinnamon sticks, there was a knock at the door. A big boned nurse came in and looked towards Helga. "I understand that the police have allowed visitors now." Helga nodded, as she had food stuffed in her mouth, and the nurse continued. "Well, you have a visitor, but I wanted to check with you to make sure it was okay with you first."

Helga swallowed her cinnamon stick, and said, "Oh sure!" She turned towards Olga and said, "It's probably Pheebs. She said she was going to stop by today." Helga turned back towards the door, and her grin quickly turned into a flat line. It wasn't Phoebe that was standing in the doorway, it was a young man that had an unforgettable head shape. It was Arnold Shortman himself.


	13. Chapter 12

**Hey guys! Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of the reviews on this story! Thank you for also being so patient with me, as it's not easy having a household, working, and going to school full time, so thank you for that :) Please keep the reviews coming, it really helps me to factor in on the next chapter, and improve on my writing!**

 **Just a note: I will probably be updating this story every Friday or Saturday night, I hope that works for everyone!**

Arnold looked at Helga. He had to stay strong in front of her, but he was internally upset and disgusted at what Wolfgang had done to her. He was even more horrified that he did this all because Helga was pregnant with his child. Before Helga could say anything to him, Arnold started first. "I know I shouldn't have come here unannounced, and I know you don't want me here. I promise I won't be long, but there's something that I have to say to you. I'm sorry. I should have never left here, and even if I did, I should have tried harder with you. I should have called you more and sent you more letters. Even when you stopped responding, I should have kept sending them, so you didn't think I forgot about you. I'm so sorry Helga, I'm so sorry for all of it. What I said on the phone, it wasn't the right thing to say. I can't just expect you to drop everything and cater to my need, and that's what I was making it seem like, and I am so sorry for that. What Wolfgang did to you was absolutely disgusting and unforgivable. I know you are going through this alone, but I want to help. It has nothing to do with romantics, but you have done a lot for me, and other people, and it's about time that someone does something for you."

Helga looked at Arnold, slowly shaking her head. He had changed quite a bit in the five years that she lost him. He had a husky voice still, but it was much deeper. He had an athletic build and was even more tan than he previously was. He was also much more taller and wore an open red plaid shirt with a teal tee shirt underneath; his baseball cap was also gone from his head. Some things were still similar about him however, he still had the wild hair, and he still had a football head, but he grew into it so it didn't stand out as much. Cutting herself off from her observation, she said, "Um, Arnold." She sighed and continued, "I also didn't respond to you either when you were in San Lorenzo, it's not all of your fault. And, I don't need you to help me, I will be okay, somehow. Besides, you aren't staying here anyway, right? It's just a visit."

Arnold rubbed the back of his neck, and said, "Actually, I moved back the night before...everything happened."

Helga couldn't process what he was saying to her. _Wait, Arnold's back? For good? Nope, Helga, keep your guard up._ "Oh, um, welcome back to this disgusting place. I hope you made the right choice," she said sarcastically, and continued, "But for real, I don't need you to help me. It's a nice gesture, but I got this." _I hope I do anyway_.

Arnold nodded, understanding that Helga just wanted to be left alone. He had to tell her he was sorry, he had to let her know that he never meant for her to feel thrown away. Feeling satisfied and wanting to give Helga space, he said, "Well, if you ever need anything, anything at all, just let me know." Helga shakily nodded, and he continued, "I um, I guess I should get going-"

Olga interrupted Arnold's sentence and said, "Oh! Why don't you stay for a cup of coffee? We could all catch up?"

Arnold's face reddened, and his palms started to sweat. "I don't know- its Helga's decision. I'm not going to force my way in here. I wasn't trying to do that."

 _Ease_ _up, Helga. It might not be bad to have a conversation with someone else besides Pheobe_ _and Olga,_ Helga thought to herself. "Well, Hair Boy, you can come sit down. We had some pizza, but that's been devoured," Helga said smugly.

Arnold looked surprised, "Are you sure Helga? I can definitely leave, it's no problem at all."

"Yes, I want you to stay okay? Now sit down, and enjoy the company," Helga snapped.

 _Oh Helga, you're still as fiery as I remember_ , Arnold thought to himself. He then said with a half-lidded gaze and a soft voice, "Whatever you say, Helga," as he walked to the chair next to her nightstand. He rubbed his palms together, and looked around the hospital room, trying not to feel as awkward as he did. _Maybe I shouldn't have come to the hospital_ , he thought to himself, _she probably felt forced to invite me here._

Interrupting Arnold's thoughts, Helga said, "So, you have changed quite a bit." _Helga, why would you make that the first thing to say? You sound like a fucking creep._

Arnold looked towards Helga and looked at her intently. "You have as well," he said while displaying a small smile towards her.

Helga blushed fervently, and turned away from Arnold. _Why was this so hard to talk to him? Just be yourself, Helga. You don't like him or anything, he's just an acquaintance._

Just as Helga was looking away, Arnold put his head down, and silently breathed out fast. _Why is this so hard and awkward? I've known her my whole life. Just don't try hard, Arnold. You don't like her or anything like that anymore, you are just trying to be a friend to her. Think of something to talk about that won't end in silence._ As if a lightbulb went off in his head, Arnold asked Helga, "So, how far along are you?"

Helga turned back towards Arnold and said with a wry smile on her face, "I'm six weeks along." She looked at Arnold, and joked, "And please don't give me the lecture of how I should have waited until marriage." _I wonder if he has had sex,_ Helga thought to herself, _why would I even care anyway? That's his business._

Arnold laughed, and said, "Oh Helga, I'm not going to lecture you on anything. What you do with your life is your business, and your business only." He sniffed, and continued, "Congratulations, though, on the baby. Are they okay? You know, based on what happened," his voice trailed off.

Helga looked down and closed her eyes, trying to block out what happened in the park that day. She said quietly, "The doctor said the baby is good, but I put a lot of stress on my body, so I just have to watch myself."

"That makes sense, stuff like that can be tough on the fetus and such," Arnold said, while looking at the floor.

Helga looked at Arnold, and figuring she could add more to the conversation, she turned towards the nightstand, picking up the ultrasound picture. She handed it to Arnold, and said, while pointing to the gray circle, "This is the little one right here."

Arnold held the picture in his hand, and stared at it for a moment, and said, "Wow, the baby is so small!"

Helga's eyes widened, and replied, "I know! I thought it was crazy that something so small was giving me so many symptoms that I hope I never experience again." Both Arnold and Helga started to laugh because of what she said.

Arnold trailed off of his laughing, and asked Helga, "But seriously, how have you been feeling?"

Helga inhaled deeply, and said somberly, "I know, what Wolfgang did is hard to hide. Honestly, my whole body hurts, and I can't walk at all. Then when you add in the nausea and food cravings from the pregnancy, it's just kind of overwhelming."

Arnold shook his head, and looked down at the ground, looking intently at the separation of the two tiles in front of his feet. "I can't imagine how you are feeling. Is there anything that you can take for the pain?"

Helga shook her head and chuckled, "Nope, 'cause then it will hurt the baby, but it's okay. I'm not looking for a pity party or anything."

"Oh I know," Arnold replied, "But still, that..that really sucks. I wish there was something that could be done."

Helga smiled towards Arnold and said, "Honestly, just talking, whether it's to Olga, you, or Phoebe, has really made me not think about it as much."

Arnold smiled back at Helga, and replied, "Well I'm glad that conversations are helping you through this."

….

For the rest of the day, and into the early evening, Helga and Arnold continued talking. They talked about little things, from the change of the city, to the change of all of their classmates. They even talked about their own lives, although Helga left a lot of hers out, including the loss of her father's business, as well as where she lived. Despite this, for the first time in quite a while, Helga felt truly safe.


	14. Chapter 13

**Hello everyone! I just want to apologize for the delay on this chapter. The past two weeks were very busy, and I had some personal things going on. However, I am back, and thank you guys for being so patient with me! I made this one a longer one this time, just as a thank you to you all! However, the ending of this chapter is very simple, I will warn you!**

 **I did get a review about why Helga is keeping the baby. Like I have said before, for the purpose of this story, as well as creative-wise, Helga is going to keep the baby. I did subtlety reveal what made Helga keep her baby, however, it may not have been read well. So, I will be going more into depth of why she wants to keep the baby in this chapter. Also, for the rest of the chapters in this story, I will be titling the chapters based on the weeks of Helga's pregnancy, so there may be some time jumps here and there.**

 **Also, I am adding some more stuff into my oh so busy schedule (hey, I sounded like Lila there!) so the chapter upload may not be every single week. If that is the case, I will provide longer chapters and try to execute the writing better. I really hope this is okay with everyone, and I don't want anyone to think that I am done with this Fanfiction, which I am not at all! However, I work forty hours a week, go to school full time, and have a family of dogs, so life is pretty hectic, to say the least.**

 **Okay, enough about me, here is the next chapter!**

In room 309 of Hillwood Hospital, laughter was emerging from the room. The two teenagers, Arnold and Helga, were continuing their talk about their P.S. 118 classmates, and all of the changes that occurred with them.

"I know, can you believe it? Eugene is now nominated for an Emmy!" Helga exclaimed, while trying to suppress her laughter.

Arnold snorted, and said, "Wow! The unluckiest kid in Hillwood is now a star, that is something!"

The two continued to laugh, until a knock came from the other side of the door. Both Arnold and Helga fell silent, and then Helga said, "Come in!"

The door opened slowly, and a small Japanese American girl emerged from behind it. "Oh, hello Arnold. How nice it is to see you again!"

Arnold turned towards the door and smiled. "Hey Phoebe. How are you?"

Phoebe smiled back at Arnold, and said, "Oh, you know. Just same old, same old." She then looked past Arnold towards Helga, and said, "Helga, how are you feeling?"

Slightly disappointed that Phoebe interrupted her and Arnold's conversation, she said quietly, "I'm alright."

Arnold, noticing how long he had been at the hospital, realized that Phoebe and Helga would want to have some time alone together, as they were best friends, and Phoebe probably wanted to see how Helga was doing. "Here Phoebe," Arnold said while getting up from his chair, "Take my seat. I'm probably going to head out soon anyway."

Phoebe nodded and walked towards Arnold's once occupied chair. "Thank you so much, Arnold."

"No problem," he said, while turning towards Helga. He noticed that she looked somewhat upset, but he wasn't sure why. "Well Helga, this was really nice. I meant what I said, and if you need anything, anything at all, just call me."

Helga wanted to burst into tears in that moment. _Why is he being so nice to me? What did I do to deserve this?_ "Okay, Arnold. It was nice seeing you, and don't be a stranger, okay?"

Arnold gave her his half-lidded gaze that made her melt five years ago, and he said, "You too Helga, and I won't."

As Arnold closed the door, Phoebe looked at Helga with a look of shock on her face. She waited until the door was completely shut, and said, "Gosh Helga, how long has he been here?"

Helga glanced at Phoebe with a content look on her face, and she said, "Oh, I'm not sure. He came here in the afternoon, so."

Phoebe smiled at Helga, and said, "So, you found out?"

Helga, who was currently staring at the door in a mix of upset and bliss, shook off her reaction, and said harshly, "Yeah! And thanks for telling me about Arnold."

Blushing and looking down at the ground, Phoebe said, "Well, I was going to tell you the day you found out you were pregnant, but it just wasn't the right time because you were already preoccupied."

Scowling at her friend, but understanding what she meant, Helga added, " _Okay_ , I get it. Let's just move on, how is the outside world? All I have seen for the past few days is this stupid hospital."

Phoebe put her small hand on her mouth and chuckled. She then said, "Not much really, although everyone knows about what happened in the park-"

Helga's eyes bugged out of her head, and she screamed, "What?" She could hear her heart monitor increasing in sound due to her screaming.

Phoebe glanced at the monitor and then at Helga. "Well of course everyone knows, Helga. It was in the middle of a public place," she said matter-of-factly.

Helga shook her head in astonishment and replied hastily, "Criminy, I know that. But what I meant was, does anyone know about the baby?"

Phoebe gave Helga an annoyed look, and said, "You were just beaten badly by the father of your baby because you told him about it, and all you care about is if people know you are pregnant? Come _on_ , Helga."

Helga looked at Phoebe in despair. _Phoebe's_ _right, I can't be so concerned with this, especially if I'm going to keep the baby._ "Yeah, you're right, I'm being stupid, I know," Helga replied somberly.

"You're not being stupid, Helga. I just think you need to have your priorities in check. By the way, have you decided if you're going to keep it or not?" Phoebe asked with anticipation.

"I'm going to keep the baby, yes," Helga replied in a hesitant tone.

Phoebe smiled at first, but then questioned, "Forgive me, Helga, but you aren't in the best situation. Why are you keeping the baby?"

Helga nodded, understanding what Phoebe meant. "I know it sounds crazy, Pheebs. Like, why would I decide to keep a baby that I probably shouldn't keep? Well, to be honest with you, before all of this happened, I wasn't going to keep it. I planned on telling Wolfgang, and then use up some money that I have saved in my account to get an abortion." Phoebe glanced at Helga, and then gave her a look, signaling Helga to continue. "But then, when Wolfgang was hurting me, I got this epiphany that I couldn't think just about myself in that moment. I had to fight for whoever was inside me, despite who their father was. I just got this instinct to protect them, and I couldn't get rid of that instinct, even when Wolfgang was stopped. And now, I can't get rid of my baby, I just can't. We have already been through a lot, and despite my current situation, it won't be forever, and I just feel like this is my light. So much has gone on in my life, and I just feel like this is a blessing in disguise. I know, it sounds bad."

Phoebe shook her head violently, and said, "No, no, no. It doesn't at all. Just know that my family and I can help in any way possible." Phoebe put her hand on Helga's shoulder, and smiled.

Helga smiled back, however, she didn't want to ask too much from people, especially Phoebe, who had already done so much for her in the past.

….

Arnold decided to walk home instead of taking the bus, and regretted it after the second mile in. Figuring he was still winded from his fight with Wolfgang, he decided to take the rest of the walk slow. After about forty-five minutes, he finally got home to the boarding house, where Oskar and Ernie were sitting on the stoop of the boarding house, talking. Ernie interrupted Oskar, looked at Arnold with a look of excitement and concern, and said, "Hey Arnold, good to see you out of your room."

Arnold looked up from the ground towards Ernie with a half-smile on his face. "Thanks Ernie," he said, while heading into the boarding house. Once he got into the house, his grandfather walked out from the dining room, and gave Arnold a delighted look.

"Hey Shortman! You left the house today?"

Arnold glanced at his grandfather and said, "Yeah. I went to the hospital to see Helga."

Phil looked at Arnold with an eyebrow raised, but asked concernedly, "Oh? Um, how is she?"

Figuring that it really wasn't his business to give all of the details about Helga to his grandfather, plus the fact that Helga had always been very private, said abruptly, "She's good, doing a lot better now."

Phil narrowed his eyes at his grandson and said, "That's it, huh. Nothing else?"

Arnold furrowed his eyebrows and cocked his head to the side. He then asked, "What do you mean?"

His grandfather put a finger on his bony chin and rubbed it, while looking up at the ceiling. In a questioning tone, he replied, "Well, you know. You were there for quite a while, surely there's more than just 'she's good'."

Arnold turned crimson, and stuttered, "W-well we j-just talked and stuff. We caught up and s-stuff."

Just as his grandfather was going to add more to their conversation, Arnold's grandmother ran out from the kitchen and into the living room, followed by the stray animals. She was carrying a raw chicken and chanting.

Phil grunted and exclaimed, "Pookie! What are you going to do with that chicken?!" He ran into the living room to follow her.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Arnold headed for the stairs, being stopped by his father, Miles, who was coming out from the sitting room at the end of the hall. "Hey Arnold, got a minute to talk, son?"

Figuring that he couldn't just avoid his family, which is what he was doing before he got out of his room to see Helga, he said to his father, "Sure Dad."

Miles smiled, and signaled Arnold to come over to the sitting room. Arnold followed suit, and sat down on the armchair, while Miles sat on the other one next to it. Miles leaned forward in the chair and held his hands together, while looking at Arnold with concern. "So uh son, first off, I'm glad to see that you have seen some life besides the walls of your room."

Arnold gave a half smile towards his father and replied, "Yeah, me too."

Miles smiled back at Arnold and continued, "Well, I just want to make sure that you are okay. What you did for your friend a few days ago, that was very brave of you. I know you and her had a thing back in the day, so it must have hurt to see her like that."

Arnold closed his eyes shut and was trying not to think back to that day, as his father was right. It didn't just hurt, it felt like his heart was ripped out of his chest and pounded with a cleaver. "Dad, can we not talk about that? It's just, it did hurt, and I saw her in a way that I don't ever want to see again."

Knowing that he messed up his conversation with his son, Miles put a hand on Arnold's shoulder and said, "I'm sorry, son. I didn't mean to bring up anything that would upset you. I just wanted to check in on you, your mother and I are here for you, and whatever is going on with Helga as well. Speaking of, you went to see her today, right?"

Arnold nodded at his father, still trying to shake off the memories of her and Wolfgang.

Miles added, "Well, how is she doing?"

Knowing how very private Helga was, Arnold didn't want to tell his father that she was pregnant, not just because of how she was, but also because he wasn't sure if that was the right thing to do, since it really wasn't any of his business. Although he hated to do it, he lied to his father, saying, "Oh, she's really good. She's healing up well and stuff."

"That's good son, that's really good. Does she know about what you did?"

Arnold didn't want to come off as the hero or anything like that, considering he still felt like Wolfgang hurting Helga was his fault. With a grunt, he replied, "Yeah." Quickly changing the subject, he said, "We ended up talking a while, just about how things changed and what was going on around Hillwood."

Not wanting to peer deep into his son's personal life, although him and Stella adored Helga, he added, "That's great son. Well, I just wanted to make sure everything was alright, you are free to leave the dungeon of interrogation," he joked.

Arnold laughed and said, "Okay Dad," as he started to leave the room.

"Oh, you missed dinner! There's some leftovers in the fridge if you want any," Miles hollered out into the hall, where Arnold currently was.

"Great, thanks!" Arnold hollered back, while walking towards the fridge. He heated up the leftovers, which were beef stew and dumplings, and headed upstairs to his room. Relieved that no one else stopped him to talk, he quickly shut his door, and ate at his desk.

Once he was done his food, he laid in bed, and quickly started to feel sleepy. Pulling the covers over him, he started to close his eyes, and fell asleep.


End file.
